Warriors [4] Theros Ironfield (11 page)

“I didn’t kill him! I was trying to help him!” Theros protested.

“Shut up, you useless excuse for a human. There was no justice on the field of battle today, but there will be justice here. Pray for Sargas to take you, as death is your next destination. Justice is served, human!”

The minotaur drew back with his axe, and swung. To Theros’s astonishment, the axe halted in midair. Instead, the warrior stumbled.

“Ah, Nevek,” growled Huluk, holding onto the haft of the axe. “I was wondering what had happened to you.”

Huluk slumped back against a tree, barely able to keep upright.

“But—but, sir,” Nevek cried. “I thought you were dead!”

“For an up-and-coming officer, you are not terribly
observant. Next time check to see if I am breathing.”

Nevek shook his head. “Officer?”

Huluk laughed softly. “You are the second-in-command of this fine army of ours.” The strain was too much. He slid down the tree to the forest floor.

Still suspicious, Nevek glanced at Theros. “Yes, sir. I see your point. But if I am an officer now, who is the army? This slave?”

Huluk looked up at Theros. “This slave taught me honor today, and he saved my life. It is wrong for a slave to teach a minotaur honor and so you should no longer be a slave. What is your name, human?”

“I am Theros, slave to—”

Huluk interrupted. “You are Theros, a free human currently in the employ of the mighty Third Army of the Minotaur Supreme Circle. Or should I say, you
are
the mighty Third Army of the Minotaur Supreme Circle.”

Theros was hesitant. “Do you mean it, sir? I am free?”

“You are free, Theros, and you are to be commended for your bravery and honor. Now, do I hear the sound of running water?”

Theros and Nevek hoisted the minotaur officer between the two of them, and Theros led them to his hiding spot. The sun was beginning to fall into the hills beyond the forest, casting long shadows.

They set Huluk down on the moss-covered side of the river. He started to peel off his armor and coverings, but the pain was too great. Nevek came over to help. The blood had encrusted around Huluk’s wound, and continued to seep out.

Together, the two minotaurs waded into the water. Nevek helped Huluk wash the minor wounds, then they did their best with the more serious wound. The slow-moving water grew red with the washing away of blood.

Theros remained on the river shore. He was searching for a way to start a fire. Without one this night, Huluk might die. Theros needed Huluk to go back to the coastal village to let authorities know that he, a senior officer in the military, had released Theros from servitude.

Theros couldn’t believe it. He was free. He thought he
should be happy over this, was surprised to find out he wasn’t. What did freedom mean to the young man? It meant no one would take care of him anymore. No one would see to it that he was fed, clothed, had a bed at night. He was on his own. He shook his head.

There was work to be done. Nevek had brought two empty wineskins, a smoked hindquarter of pork meat, a hunting knife and a small tinderbox. The forest floor was littered with twigs and dried branches. Hran had taught Theros how to make a hearth that did not smoke much, and he used the lore to build his fire.

Dried leaves served as the kindling. Using the tinderbox, he started a small fire. Twigs, then small branches followed, until he had a little fire going. They had nothing to boil water in. There were wild onions and a few mushrooms around. They could have used the pork with the fungus and vegetables to make a small stew, but there was no pot.

Huluk and Nevek clambered out of the cool water and onto the shore. “How is the commander doing?” Theros asked.

Huluk collapsed beside the fire. He closed his eyes and he was shivering.

Nevek said in a low voice. “He is not well. There must be some infection. He may not live through the night.”

“Can’t we do something? Cauterize the wound or something?” Theros asked.

Nevek looked dubious. “I know that’s what we should do, but I have no idea how to do it. I do not have the experience.”

“When I was on board the ship, the second mate sometimes had to do it if there was a wounded warrior or injured slave,” Theros said. “All you do is heat a piece of metal until it is white-hot. Then you stick it in the wound. It burns the area around the wound, but kills the infection and closes the hole. I can get the fire hot enough and we can use your knife. I can’t do the surgery, though. I wouldn’t be able to hold him down when he starts to thrash. You could, though.”

Nevek’s eyes widened. “You want me to stick a searing
hot knife into Huluk’s buttocks? He would kill me with his bare hands alone!”

“He’ll be dead if you don’t.”

Nevek nodded. It had to be done. The sky was turning a deep shade of red. The lower depths of the forest were becoming obscured in darkness. Night and its chill would soon be on them.

Theros dug a shallow pit with the hunting knife. He patted down the sides to make it smooth, then crawled to the stream’s edge to pick up small pebbles. He brought these back to line the bottom and sides of his pit. Then, he took two sticks and picked up the hottest burning embers, transferring them to the new firepit. Next, he built up the fire. Every so often, he would stop and blow on the fire, building its embers.

Theros showed Nevek how to keep the fire hot by blowing on it. He went back to the stream and cleaned the knife that he’d used to dig. It had to be used as the instrument of cauterization.

Nevek wrapped a wineskin strap over the knife’s handle. Theros inserted the knife into the fire. He kept the inner embers white-hot by blowing on them and shifting the coals, just as Hran had taught him.

It took nearly an hour for the knife to heat so that it glowed red on the outside and yellow in the center.

“It’s time,” Theros said. He glanced over at Huluk. “Fortunately, he’s unconscious.”

Nevek swallowed hard. He rolled Huluk onto his back. “I’ll do the burning, but you sit on Huluk’s head, between his horns. Don’t let him get up, or we’re both dead. Hold that burning brand above so that I can see what I’m doing.”

Theros sat on the minotaur’s head. Nevek picked up the white-hot knife and moved to the officer. He sat across the small of Huluk’s back. “Hold the brand higher. I can’t see.”

Theros did as he was told. Nevek struck.

Huluk woke with a howl, began to buck and thrash about. Theros held on for the wildest ride of his life. The brand went flying backward, falling on the forest floor. Theros held on to the two horns with all of his strength.

The sound of sizzling flesh, followed by a sickening smell, turned Theros’s stomach.

The smell dissipated. The thrashing stopped, ending in a groan. Theros stood up.

“How did it go?” he asked.

Nevek retrieved the brand, stomped out the tiny brush fire that it had started. He walked down to the creek edge and dropped the knife in. The sizzle indicated that the blade was still hot. He washed off his hands and face.

“I think it went all right. I sealed the wound, and it stopped bleeding. We should wash it out again, though.”

Theros agreed. He found his shirt that he had used to stem the bleeding earlier in the day. He washed it out thoroughly in the running stream, rubbing out the hardened bits of dirt and blood in the cloth.

Scooping water in the shirt, Theros went back to Huluk. The minotaur still lay as he had when they had finished. He had not moved. Theros cleaned around the wound and poured water into it, letting it drain. He then gently cleaned out the wound.

Nevek sat down, took out his axe and set it across his lap. “I’ll take the first watch. I’ll wake you in a couple of hours. You wake me when you can’t keep your eyes open anymore. I’ll take it from there to sunrise. I’m not good with humans—I can’t read your emotions or what you are trying to say under the surface of your words. But I do think that you need more sleep than I do right now.”

Theros nodded. He didn’t bother to respond. He pitched back onto the moss and fell asleep.

* * * * *

Nevek nudged him in the morning. The sun was rising over the trees and there was no sign of a cloud in the sky. Theros started. “You were supposed to wake me!”

“I know. I rested and was comfortable. I had no problem just sitting here. Huluk suggested I leave you to rest. He said you had earned it.”

“Huluk?” Theros looked back to where the minotaur had been lying. He was not there. Theros looked over to
see the big minotaur washing in the stream.

“How is he?” Theros inquired.

Nevek nodded. “He is much better. He is not well, by any measure, but he is better than he was. I think his fever has broken. He awoke halfway through the night, sweating like a pig. I gave him some water. He felt better and went back to sleep.”

Theros breathed easier. It looked as if Huluk would survive. He was kneeling gingerly in the stream, cleaning his wound as best he could. Theros stripped off his trousers and went down to the stream to join the officer in a bath.

Huluk looked up. “Ah, it is the army! I see you are looking better than yesterday. I am glad to report that I am, too. My back end feels like it has been shot with an arrow, which it has, but it does not feel like it is on fire, which it did yesterday.

“Today we must make many miles. If I cannot keep up, Nevek will go ahead without us, to warn the village and send word to the Supreme Circle. You must help me. You will be my support.”

Theros nodded. “I understand, sir. We should eat and drink, then be on our way.”

Huluk agreed. Theros helped the wounded minotaur out of the water. They dried in the sun as they ate and prepared to move out. The road was four days’ march for an army. Nevek could probably make it in two. Theros and Huluk would take at least three.

By noon sun, it was clear that Huluk had overestimated his strength. They rested by the path in a glade and sparingly ate of the meat and drank from the water-filled wineskins.

Nevek was clearly nervous. Huluk regarded him with interest. “Are you looking around because you hear something I do not, or are you trying to figure out a way to tell me that I am too slow?”

Nevek avoided his superior officer’s eyes. “I am sorry, sir. I must abandon you here, by your own orders! I will send help back as soon as I arrive.”

Huluk nodded and grunted. “Yes, you must go. Now that you do not have us as a burden, you must hurry.
Here.” Huluk handed the young warrior the rest of the meat, the full waterskin and the commander’s own axe. “Take these. We will find other food along the way. The axe is to prove that I still live, and that you have not deserted. Send help for me. I will not be stranded here on this damned elf-infested mainland!”

Nevek took the supplies, and left without another word. He broke into a run on the other side of the glade.

“Well, my army, are you ready to aid your commander for another few miles?” Huluk struggled to stand up.

Theros sprang to his feet to support the minotaur officer. They continued down the road.

They were still moving as night began to fall. Theros left Huluk by a tree and looked around for a place to conceal a fire.

The trees changed to pine and spruce in this area. The flat land gave way to gentle, rolling hills. As they drew closer to the coast, the hills would be greater. There was no stream.

Theros found wood. The tinderbox in his pocket was all they needed to start the fire. They both drank from the waterskin. Huluk took the skin back for a second drink.

“I will take the watch tonight. You are still wounded and need the sleep.” Theros said.

Huluk handed the skin back. “No, we will both sleep tonight. Let the fire burn out. We are far enough away by now that no elf will find us.” Then Huluk added, with a wry smile, “If the elves find us, lad, they will miss Nevek.”

Theros understood. If they were indeed being hunted, they were to be the decoys.

He stacked up the fire. Huluk lay down on his side, and almost immediately went to sleep. Theros lay down, but he stared at the small sparks rising above the fire, wondering what it really meant to be free.

Chapter 11