The Black Wing (8 page)

itated, not sure what to do with it. “Better eat while you can,” he said, holding it
closer to her. Led tore off a piece of the jerky and chewed it vigorously. “It'll be a
while before Toba gets a fire started and any food cooked.” He noticed then that the woman
was watching the ogres, who towered over the shouting Toba. “You may not think they look
like much, but you wouldn't believe where we started with them. No organization at all.
None of them could even wield a club with any accuracy. They relied mostly on crushing
opponents to death.” He looked appreciatively at their ten-foot frames. “Not a bad
technique, either, when you think about it.” “Why do they work for you?” Onyx asked. She
watched the wiry Toba strike a violet- colored ogre with a club. The creature dug
marginally faster, a vicious snarl erupting through its pointy green teeth. “I killed
their chieftain.” Led took a long pull on a wineskin that hung from a frayed string on his
right shoulder. “They hated him,” he continued, wiping his mouth on the back of his
fringed leather sleeve. “Blogrut was even greedier than most ogres, driving them hard,
feeding them little, and giving them less than nothing of what meager booty they managed
to find. ”We make sure that they're fed regularly, and that each of them gets some bit of
treasure now and then, even if it's just a shiny button.“ He ducked his head through the
wineskin string and handed the leather bag to Onyx. ”They're as loyal as any human troops,
so Toba and I sleep in shifts.“ Within minutes the ogres had scraped out fire pits,
gathered wood, and started several fires: large ones for warmth and a smaller one for
cooking. Led pulled some thick blankets from his saddle pack and tossed one to Onyx.
”Unless you can sleep through an ogre's snoring, you'll want to bunk down here by my
fire.“ He dropped his blanket and settled to the ground, leaning against the soft bundle.
As Onyx did the same, Toba stepped up with three steaming platters of brown stew. They ate
the same way they traveled, in silence. Onyx smiled at the irony of sharing bread and meat
with these people she might shortly have to kill. ”What's funny?“ asked Led, mopping up
the last of his plate with a lump of hard bread. ”Nothing,“ Onyx lied. ”If s good to be
out of town.“ ”You prefer the open spaces? Me, too," Led replied.

Onyx felt suddenly talkative, though she wasn't sure why. “It isn't the buildings I mind,”
she explained. “If s the people. I feel uncomfortable surrounded by strangers. I have to
watch what I do and say too closely. I like more freedom.” Obviously bored with such
prattle, Toba gathered up the platters and strode back to the cooking fire. Watching him
go, Onyx wondered if the nyphids were also watching. She wished she knew enough about the
maynus to use it to contact them. If nothing else, she suspected Joad could confirm
whether Dela was in the wagon. Led slid over next to Onyx, their elbows touching. She
stole a glance at his profile; a brown weed was clamped between his white, even teeth. She
had never been so close to another creature without killing it. Led exuded some
unfamiliar, inviting scent that made her want to lean in and smell his skin. The impulse
brought her nose halfway to his neck before her new human senses jerked her back. Led gave
her a curious glance. Then, to her surprise, he reached up with a gloved hand and swept a
strand of hair from her forehead. Led pulled the weed from his lips. “What's that in your
hands?” he asked, looking at the two stones she was shuffling between her fingers.
“These?” she looked down. “I found them along the trail and thought they looked
interesting.” “Let me see.” Taking them from her dark fingers, Led tipped the stones
toward the firelight. One was pure black, with alternating bands of slightly lighter hues.
“Hmm,” he said. “This big egg-shaped one is onyx.” “Really?” She reached out eagerly to
take the stone back. Led yanked his hand away and smiled. “I think I'll keep it, if you
don't mind. To remind me of you.” Onyx looked intently into his face. Behind his grin, the
human was deadly serious. Her heart thrummed wildly. They fell into an awkward silence and
stared into the fire, listening to the sounds of night. “We haven't really discussed what
I need from you,” he mumbled without looking at her. Onyx jumped. “What are you talking
about?” “I was asking what protection your spells could provide.” His green eyes twinkled
with amusement. “What did you think I was talking about?” “I... didn't hear you,” she
muttered. Led saw her red face, and he smiled. “Is it your goal to be a bounty hunter all
your life?” she asked, hoping to change the subject. Led chuckled. “Actually, I'm a
jack-of-all-trades. My first 'goal,' if you will, is to wake up every day with all my
parts intact.” He turned deadly serious. “My second is to be filthy rich. The package in
the wagon is going to ensure that.” “It must be very valuable.” Led snorted. “You wouldn't
believe whaf s in” He looked anxiously over his shoulder to the other fire pit, where Toba
watched the slumbering ogres. “Never mind.” He spit the weed from his teeth. “I've been
thinking about what I'll do afterward. You mentioned dragons before.” Led relit his pipe
and squinted at her through the pungent haze. “Have you heard about the armies gathering
in the south?” Onyx leaned forward. “Armies?” “I've heard, like you, that dragons have
returned to the world. If they have, and nobody seems to know for sure, some people say
there's going to be a war. A big war, with dragons on one side and who knows what on the
other; probably the Knights of Solamnia, anyway. In a war like that, mere's lots of
opportunity for someone with brains. And if dragons are everything the stories say they
are, I know which side I'd want to be on.” “So why haven't you joined them already?” “I've
been a grunt before, like them.” He jerked a thumb at the ogres. "I'll never go

back to it. Besides, everything's changed now that I've met you.“ ”I don't understand.“
Led looked at her closely. ”With my experience and know-how and your magic, we could lead
such an army.“ ”Tell me more about dragons,“ she said, her back stiff despite her efforts
to look indifferent. ”Rumor says that the core of this army and its greatest strength are
the human generals who ride dragons into battle.“ ”Are you saying these dragons not only
allow humans to sit on their backs, but they follow the directions of such obviously
inferior creatures?“ Led gave a startled laugh. ”Thafs an odd way of putting it. Dragons
may be smart for animals, Onyx, but they're still just beasts. They're not civilized; they
have no culture or society like humans; they live in the wild like animals.“ ”How do you
know this? Have you ever seen a dragon?“ she asked in a clipped tone. Led fell back
against the blanket roll with a snort. ”I don't have to. If they were even half as smart
as humans, why would they have agreed to go away for thousands of years?“ ”Those dragons
who were banished had no choice but to go undergroundthey were ordered by their goddess,
Takhisis,“ she said a bit defensively. ”Some goddess,“ he laughed, then leaned forward
again with interest. ”That name sounds vaguely familiar. Wasn't she one of the old gods of
evil that the Seekers talk about?“ ”Seekers?“ ”Boy, where have you been?“ he cried.
”Seekers are the clerics of the religion that's risen since the Cataclysm to take the
place of the old, false gods who caused that catastrophe. Like this Takhisis.“ It was
Onyx's turn to give a bitter laugh. ”Let me assure you, Takhisis is not a false god.“ Onyx
locked her arms around her knees and considered how much she wanted to reveal to Led. ”Do
these 'Seeker clerics' possess magical skills, which only a god can grant?“ ”I don't think
so.. ..“ he answered. ”That's why no one believes in magic anymore----“ His voice trailed
off. But Onyx could do magic. In the awkward silence, they both considered the
implications of the odd conversation. ”So, are you interested?“ Led asked at last. ”In
joining the army with me, that is?“ he added quickly with a suggestion of a light-hearted
smirk. Onyx ignored it. ”Only on my own terms. I'm not impressed with a system that
subordinates a dragon to a human rider,“ she said firmly. Both sat silently for a few
moments. Something Led had said earlier puzzled Onyx. ”What does this word 'evil' mean?“
He looked at her strangely, half smiling, waiting for her to grin back. ”You're joking.“
Her tawny eyes were wide with innocence. Still not sure if she was baiting him, Led felt a
bit foolish as he proceeded with a definition anyway. ”If s a word cowards use to explain
things that frighten them, like murder or theft. For myself, I don't believe evil exists.“
Onyx mulled over those concepts. ”So people think this evil is a bad thing?“ ”The cowards
do, yes. But I think it's very natural for the strong to eliminate the weak.“ She shook
her head vigorously. ”It confounds me that humans control Krynn.“ ”I don't quite
understand you, Onyx,“ Led said, his own dark head shaking in response to Onyx's. ”First
you make it sound like I'd be a fool not to join this army, yet you condemn its system,
then defend the goddess who banished her own dragons. You're a

bag of contradictions, Onyx.“ Led's green eyes sparkled as he reached out unexpectedly to
stroke her dusky cheek. ”I'm glad you're my ally, not my enemy.“ Onyx realized distantly
that he'd actually insulted her, but the thought was chased away by the sensations his
touch evoked in her. Knocking his pipe against a rock to extinguish it, he leaned forward
and brushed his lips in a warm trail where his fingers had just passed. His calloused
hands took her by the shoulders. His fingers slid down her arms, lingering on her wrists.
He continued downward and rubbed her slim fingers between his rough ones. Onyx froze. For
the first time in her life no instinct she understood told her how to react. As a dragon,
her thoughts ran almost exclusively to the basics: satisfying hunger, seeking shelter,
acquiring treasure. These tasks were colored only by the indulgent joy she got from flying
or swimming. But she noticed a much greater range of sensations as a human. The texture of
cloth or the feel of cold air on bare skin, the distinct flavors of cooked food, the way
her pulse quickened from an admiring glance. The only looks she'd received as a dragon
were fearful or envious, both of which pleased her greatly, but in a very different
way___”You're a beautiful enigma, Onyx,“ Led said again softly, his whiskers tickling her
cheek. His warm breath was a pleasant mingling of sweet wine and pungent pipe smoke. ”I
like solving a good mystery.“ Onyx self-consciously took a pull on the wineskin, aware
that the trees beyond their fire pit were already listing in her watery sight. She fought
against the effects of the wine, even as she felt his fingertips dance down her spine
through the thin cloth of her tunic. The young woman gave a shiver that had nothing to do
with the cold. Led pressed his lips ever gently down the bridge of her nose. ”I'd kill any
man who tried to harm you," he said in a husky voice, moving to sink his teeth into the
lobe of her left ear in a manner even more disturbing than his unexpected possessiveness.
Some voice inside warned Onyx not to trust him. But dizzy from wine, she could not see how
trust entered into these feelings he aroused. She trusted no one but herself anyway. She
was in control and could stop this at any time. Besides, she told herself, if she was to
learn in the qhen way what it was to be human, she must experience all that she could as a
human. Live for the moment. Onyx gave in to the wine, to Led, and dismissed her
self-control. Instinct far different than she'd experienced as a dragon brought her dark,
slim hand up to the back of Led's neck and pulled his bearded face down to hers. Under a
black, starless sky Onyx's senses spun away to the heights she had reached only in dragon
flight.

Onyx and Led rolled apart at last and fell into exhausted slumbe'r as the night sky began
to lighten. Curled under a fur blanket, Onyx did something she hadn't since waking from
the Sleep as a dragonshe dreamed. She was a dragon again, flying; Led rode upon her back,
a sword in his hand. Together they commanded a vast army that cut down foe after faceless
foe. Dragon and rider

toppled towers, chased knights from their castles, and finally stood majestically before a
conquered throng. The vision filled her unconscious mind with a great sense of
satisfaction. Smiling in her sleep, Onyx hugged the covers closer and settled in for an
agreeably vivid show.

The disguised dragon was almost surprised to awaken to the scent of damp ashes and the
feel of a cold, hard boulder for a headrest. She was still a woman, still resting near the
fire pit, now extinguished. It had all been just a dream. Not all of it, though, she
thought smugly, flexing her stiff muscles at the memory of her night with Led. Still
groggy, she kept her eyes tightly closed as if to recapture the fantasy. Neither sleep nor
the dream returned.

Strange, Onyx thought, that this should be my first dream since waking from the magical
Sleep. She began to wonder if the word “dream” was correct for what she'd experienced.
Another thought came to mind, a possibility both frightening and fascinating.

Could it have been a vision of the future from Takhisis? Her geetna had predicted she
would do great service for the queen. Perhaps it had been fate, not accident, that the
nyphids awakened her and directed her toward Led. Was it Takhisis's wish that Onyx and Led
fight as one for her glory? She paused. Where was Led, anyway?

Onyx rolled up onto her elbow, and her fur blanket slipped away. She felt her first twinge
of modesty as she remembered she was unclothed. Cinching the fur up tightly under her
armpits, the young woman discovered with dismay that she, alone, still lay close to the
fire pit. She heard mingled sounds of activity and sat up to investigate. Onyx's acute
hearing detected splashing water. Following the noise through the snow- covered branches
of the pine trees, Onyx saw Led in the distance, bobbing in the chill mountain stream,
slapping water on his bare chest. The sight brought a blush to her cheeks and a smile to
her lips.

Hearing orders being barked in the opposite direction, Onyx's gaze fell next on Yoshiki
Toba. He was at the other end of the oblong clearing, running the ogres through a routine
drill in hand-to-hand and weapons combat. They wore no armor, but many had round wooden
bucklers strapped to their thick arms. Spiked clubs and crudely made spears appeared to be
their weapons of choice.

If Led was bathing in the stream, and Toba was engaged in morning drill, then who was
watchingOnyx's gaze shot to the left. The wagon was parked out of the way, far back in the
trees between the fire pit and the lanky lieutenant. There was no guard in sight. Onyx
sprang to her feet, yanked on her cotton batting, and tugged up her leather boots. Forcing
herself to stroll, she circled the wagon. She had seen Toba leave the ogre's fire pit with
a plate of food last night, headed for the rear of the wagon. Onyx hastened to the back
and searched the flat wooden panel from top to bottom with her hands, but found no latch
or crack to suggest an opening. Onyx chewed her lip, thinking. There were only two sides
she hadn't examined. The top of the wagon would be risky, since she would be in clear view
up there. Dropping to her knees, she ducked under the frame. But the box hung so low to
the ground that she had to turn onto her back and kick her feet into the dirt to push
herself beneath it. The wagon was supported by thick metal straps and the two axles that
stretched between the wheels. Near the middle of the wagon was a small trapdoor, held shut
by a dead bolt. Onyx carefully slid the bolt aside, then grabbed at the wooden door before
it could swing down and bang into the metal strap. Still on her back, Onyx gripped the
edge of the wooden slot and pulled her head and shoulders toward the opening. It was so
narrow that her face scraped the side when she managed at last to poke her head into the
bottom of the wagon. Onyx peered around,

calling on her dragon sight in the lightlessness. There, huddled in a corner, was a small
heap covered by a dirty fur. “Dela?” Onyx whispered. The lump shifted slightly at the
sound. The fur began to slip. Onyx caught a glimpse of disheveled blond hair. Her heart
hammered in expectation.

Something grabbed Onyx by the feet. Her jawbone slammed into the rough opening as the
hands around her boots labored to haul her from under the wagon. After three jarring tugs,
her bruised face cleared the hole. The hands tugged again, and the back of Onyx's head
dropped painfully onto the hard, frozen ground. She scrabbled and clawed to escape, but
all she managed was to roll onto her front, so that she was pulled from beneath the wagon
on her face. A blade-tipped boot kicked her in the side, rolling her onto her back again.
Onyx looked up the legs that formed an inverted Y above her. “Lose something, Onyx?”
Yoshiki Toba's breath ringed his head as white steam. “If thaf s even your name.” He
snugged his feet closer to her sides, trapping her.

Onyx looked up at Toba's yellow-skinned face, speechless. Almost seeing Dela, Toba
catching her spyingit had happened so fast she could scarcely think of what to say, how to
explain away her presence under the wagon. She saw the anger in his eyes and knew there
would be no fooling the watchful overlord.

“Got nothin' to say?” Toba chuckled. “I knew from the start there was something strange
about you. Led's always had a soft spot in his melon for pretty women.” He grabbed Onyx by
the left arm and nearly tugged it from the socket. “Maybe you'll find your voice in time
to explain to your paramour what you were doing under there.” Led! He'd throw her out of
his band for sure. Then it would be impossible to free Dela in her human form. And what
about her dream? She had to silence Toba before he told their leader. She had no weapons,
nothing on but her batting and boots. She searched her mind for a spell that would kill
him instantly, without a trace, but her magical skills simply weren't that developed yet.
If she were a dragon, she could call on her breath weapon___ Holding Onyx's arm tightly
with one hand, Toba bent down and reached under the wagon. He fumbled until he found the
trap door, then shut and bolted it. He straightened and glared at her with sinister eyes.
“Stand,” he ordered. When she refused to plant her feet or lock her knees, he kicked her
viciously in the legs. Onyx felt herself start to panic. Then, quite suddenly, something
burned the skin of her neck, and she cried aloud. The maynus. Pulling the choker by the
vine with her free hand, she settled the tiny swords and globe atop her purple tunic. The
maynus scorched her even through the cloth. It was the brilliant blue-white of the hottest
fire. Onyx had never seen the source of Dela's magic do that before. The faces in the
lightning bolts flashed through Onyx's mind. She heard Kadagan's voice from months ago:
“We commanded it to lift thee.” She touched a hand to the scalding maynus. “Take him, and
leave no trace/' she whispered, not sure what to expect. ”Hey, what?" Toba's muttered
question was cut off when a white-hot bolt of lightning leaped from the globe. It snapped
around his trunk like a lasso, pinning his arms to his sides. The wiry man's eyes went
wide and fearful. He was too startled to scream at first. He wasn't given the chance
later. Toba's prominent cheekbones twisted and contorted, and his whole body seemed to
melt into colorful, swirling vapor. Crackling, the branch of lightning pulled him toward
its source, the globe at Onyx's collarbone. The churning mass that Toba had become
withdrew into the maynus with a hollow sucking sound. Stunned, Onyx peered down her chin
to the globe. It had cooled to pale blue. Lightning bolts again danced and ricocheted
within. To her further amazement, she

thought she could see the vague outline of Toba's face pressing against the glass from the
inside. Had she killed the human, Onyx wondered, or just trapped him in the magical globe?
Either way, he couldn't talk to Led now. Onyx frowned. At least she didn't think he could
communicate from inside the globe. She knew so little about the nyphids' artifact.

Rustling from inside the wagon brought Onyx's attention back to Dela. She could free the
nyphid now. Dela would know what to do with Toba, too. Onyx dropped to her knees again and
flipped onto her back to scoot beneath the wagon. “Yoshiki Toba, you miserable scut, why
have you left the ogres lumbering like aimless zombies in the clearing?” Led called from
the stream, his voice bright with humor. “You'd better be making my breakfast. Onyx, are
you awake yet?”

Half under the wagon, Onyx froze with indecision. She was so close to freeing Dela. Yet,
if she didn't answer Led and he found her here, she'd be in the same spot she'd been with
Toba. Only, strangely, she didn't want to kill Led, or even draw him into the globe. The
dream was too insistent, its promise of glory too fresh in her mind.

Onyx clambered from under the wagon. Brushing vainly at her muddy clothing, she strode
purposefully along the right side of the cart and back to the fire pit. Led emerged from
the trees on the beaten snowy path that came from the stream. Scrubbing his wet hair with
a nubby cloth, he was still bare to the waist, his skin red with cold. Seeing Onyx, he
smiled in warm greeting. “There you are.” He let the cloth drop to his shoulders. “Good
morning.”

“And to you,” she said, forcing a wan smile in return. He peered at her curiously. “You're
a mess. And your face is all scratched up. What have you been doing?” Onyx hitched up her
pants and managed a meaningful, blushing look over her shoulder to the woods behind the
wagon. “I was ... well, I unfortunately chose a very muddy patch. A branch snapped out,
and, uh, you know___” Led nodded slowly. He frowned and looked about. “Where's Toba?” Onyx
shrugged, unconsciously tucking the silent, still-blue maynus back beneath the neckline of
her tunic. If Toba was in there, he wasn't talking. Led swore under his breath. “He knows
we're in a hurry to get to Kernen.” “Maybe he's occupied as I was,” Onyx suggested,
looking to the woods. “Could be,” said Led a bit dubiously. He kicked the ashes to life in
the fire pit, adding a handful of twigs to the smoldering pile. “If I have to fix my own
grub because of it, he'll pay the price. Say, you're a woman. Don't you know how to cook?”
“Uh, no. I've never had to, actually.” “You probably just magic it up.” Led sat on a
boulder, pulled off his boots, and held his toes to the fire. “Nothing like a bath in a
fresh mountain stream. Leaves you with cold feet, though.” Led shrugged on a tunic over
his damp, curling hair. He glanced with disdain at the ogres across the clearing. “Wish I
could get them to bathe once in a while. They think if 11 make 'em sick.” The human's head
snapped around toward the forest. “Toba! Where in the Abyss are you, man?” After a few
moments of awkward silence, Onyx sat on the boulder next to his and reached toward Led's
own pack. “I'm starving. Do you have any more of that jerky?” “Yeah, sure,” Led said. He
plunged his hand into the leather sack and retrieved a strip of the blackened meat, as
well as a wineskin. He offered both to Onyx. “If s not breakfast, but if s better than
nothing.” Onyx took the wineskin and drank greedily. “Thaf s it,” snarled Led abruptly,
slapping his knees. “I'm gonna take a look around for Toba's bony yellow hide.” He pulled
his leather armor from his horse and strapped it on, adding stiff leather cuisses to his

thighs. Next, he gingerly slipped a chain mail coif over his head and adjusted it into
position. Over that he placed a massive metal helm that dropped to his shoulders in the
back, and came low over his brow and swept in from the sides to cover both cheeks. Last,
he strapped his girdle around the chain mail at his waist and settled his sword so that
the hilt was within easy reach.

Onyx gulped wine nervously as she watched him dress. She tried to slow her breathing to
calm herself in the qhen way, but couldn't seem to focus as completely in her human form
as she had as a dragon. Her breathing remained shallow, her pulse racing. Led walked the
perimeter of the clearing, calling Toba's name into the trees. The human stopped and spoke
to a green-skinned ogre who sat idly with the others where Toba had left them.

Onyx looked wide-eyed into Led's stormy face when he returned to the fire. “No luck?”
“It's just not like Toba to disappear for this long without telling me what he's up to.
The ogres say they saw him heading this way. Didn't you see him?” “No. I was probably
still sleeping. Maybe he went out looking for food and wandered farther than he thought.”
“Doubtful. He knows we have enough stores to last...” Onyx idly traced a seam in her boot,
unable to look Led in the eye. “Could he simply have run off?” Led scratched his head. “I
can't see it. He knew how much we stand to gain when we deliver the wagon. No, Toba's too
greedy to just up and abandon his share.” Onyx took a long pull on the wineskin. “The fact
remains that he's gone. How long are you willing to wait for him?” “That depends.” Led
rubbed his chin. “Say, do you know some kind of spell that can find a missing person?”
Onyx stopped in midgulp, the crimson liquid splashing her lips. She handed him the skin
and wiped her mouth on the cuff of her batting. “Yes,” she lied. “I don't have all the
things I need to cast the enchantment, though. But I can probably find the right kinds of
roots and funguses in the woods. I'll go into the forest and give it a try.” Led watched
her finger the odd choker. “Whatever. Just be careful. We don't know what happened to him,
so keep your eyes open. In fact, maybe I should come along, too.” “No,” snapped Onyx. “I
can concentrate better if I'm alone. I can protect myself, if you're worried. I know
magic, remember? Besides, someone needs to watch the ogres.” Led couldn't argue with that
logic. He helped Onyx put on her brigandine armor. Pulling her horse around by the bit,
Onyx put her left toe in the stirrup and swung her other leg over, then set the horse's
head downhill. Led tossed the wineskin to her. Sunlight streaked across his brilliant
green eyes, and he snarled with annoyance. “With or without Toba, we've got to get back on
the trail quickly. Come back as soon as you know anything.” Nodding, Onyx slipped the
strap of the skin over her head and shoulder, then dug her heels into the black mare's
ribs. They shot off down the rough-cut trail at a gallop. Onyx gave the horse its head. It
stayed with the narrow trail that paralleled the same stream by the clearing. Khisanth was
grateful the lie had succeeded. She didn't use components to cast spells, but she was
desperate to get away and think. She seemed unable to control her own actions as a human,
particularly with Led's penetrating eyes on her. What had happened to her qhen training?
Though it was causing her no end of problems now, she was not sorry she hadwell, done
whatever she'd done to Toba. It had been rash, definitely not qhen, but even Kadagan would
have agreed that she'd had no choice. The problem was what to tell Led that would make him
abandon his lieutenant? Worse