NOVEL NEXT Book 3, Chapter 13 - Fear of the dark
The temperature dropped rapidly as night fell. Without any clouds to retain the warmth, the crystal-clear sky sucked the heat away. The fires were lit and roaring, rich smells of roasting meat filled the air. Huge cauldrons were filled with stews and various delicacies, and rare foodstuffs from the south and east were being prepared.
I hadn't missed my 'throne'. It was a hardwood chair, simple in form, designed by people who valued timber for constructing their massive wagons to accommodate their migratory lifestyle. Owning such an item used to be a sign of great wealth among the Sykareskyn, but now it was much more commonplace. Storage beads made the transport of weighty objects a cinch, and the tribes had quickly adapted to the advantages magic offered.
Men smoked pipes and bickered about whose grandad did what to whom, while the ladies did their best to keep a lid on any ancient blood feuds from flaring up. Generous quantities of yalk, the fermented milk drink the tribes favoured, had been shared out, along with wines and something like brandy that had been taken as loot from the cities we had conquered.
Raucous boasts and shouts filled the air from the human men. The ladies and Huskar present all looked more bemused than anything else. Fay sat next to me near the largest of the fires, sipping from a goblet of wine. I had a tankard of yalk in one hand and a platter of meat in the other and was currently trying to figure out how to eat without putting my drink down. I'd missed these people.
"Lord! I challenge your man Jandak! I can best him in any competition!" called a tribesman I didn't know. He must be a chief, or at least the patriarch of a major family, to be this close to the king's fire, but for the life of me, I couldn't recall his name. He was also clearly drunk; his speech was slightly slurred, and he swayed a little on his feet. His hair was trimmed into a strange style, long at the back and cut to a point between his shoulder blades, then it curved up to a flat fringe at the front.
I couldn't ask what tribe he was from; that would be an insult. He had been the recipient of some Souls; he had an A body and a B mind stat. Whatever the challenge, it wouldn't be a fair match. Jandak was much more powerful than this stranger.
"Jandak, are you going to take that?" I called jovially. The Fangs were used to being niggled at by men looking to make a name for themselves. My friend set aside his plate and drink, then rose to his feet.
"The rope?" Jandak called out, and the crowd roared in approval. It was a tug of war over a bed of hot coals, one of the more popular games of strength among the warriors.
"Have you seen my hair? I don't fancy getting too close to the fire! I'm not immune to flames like our lord! How about a drinking game!" called the chief.
"As you wish!" Jandak said with a grin, stepping away from the semicircle of chairs that my inner circle occupied around the fire.
"Who is that?" I quietly asked Fay.
"The challenger? I don't know. Nor do I recognise that cut. Could he be from the western tribes? The Gabafs, perhaps? Ray, you really should try some of these honeyed treats! They're delicious!" she offered me one from her plate.
"No thanks, love. I'm not a fan of cricket meat!" Fay looked at the morsel and went pale.
"This is an insect?" she hissed, dropping the thing to her plate.
Kril leaned over and snatched it up, tossing it into his mouth with a grin. "Delicacy among the Urkashi. Crunchy and sweet!" He shared his gap-toothed smile once he had swallowed the bug. "You should try the hagith, that's a Crathan dish made from the entrails of–"
"No, thank you," Fay said hurriedly. "I'll just stick with the stew and the roast aurox, I think. Shit-sitters are so disgusting."
"They aren't all bad," I muttered, taking a swig of my wine. Jandak and the unknown tribesman were busily putting away cups of yalk, as though we had an infinite supply of the stuff. Drinking competitions between men with hugely enhanced physical attributes were probably not an economically viable idea.
"Where are they, Jagapan?" I asked, looking across to the king, who was cheerfully egging the two already drunk warriors on.
"The emissaries? Kalt, go get them from their tents." One of Jagapan's shadows rose from a crouch behind him and strode off into the maze of tents.
"What do you know about them?" I asked, and the older man leaned towards me.
"Pretty. Painfully so. Whoever decided to call them beauties wasn't wrong. Four men, three women. All different, all the same. Too perfect." He spat towards the fire.
"They don't make mistakes? What do you mean?" I asked, pressing for more clarity.
"Not that I've seen, and if they did fuck up, I doubt they'd ever admit it. They blend. Within a couple of hours, they'd mastered the nuances of our language, and they only needed to see something once to copy it perfectly. I don't trust them, Mond. What is their master like?"
"I don't know, Jagapan. On Earth, he was… a manipulator? He was famous for being famous, I think. I wasn't exactly big on social media, but he had done very well from it." I had to briefly explain the concept of social media, sending Kril into cackling laughter and leaving the rest of the group looking confused.
"And that is worthy of a herd on your home world?" asked Fay in shock. I shrugged. I wasn't going to defend it.
"Afraid so. Not just a herd. He was richer than any chief, rich compared to Crathan autocrats. If it were the same on Earth, he would only wear purple," I said.
"All from these video things?" Jagapan wondered. "No wonder you fell in with us so smoothly!"
I wasn't sure exactly what he meant, but we were getting off topic, so I tried to steer it back to where I wanted it to be.
"So these messengers are slick and beautiful. But what are they like?"
"Well, Mond. You are hardly a charming man," Jagapan began, earning a swat from his wife on his left.
"Husband! Firstly, that is not respectful, and secondly, you are hardly in a position to judge another on that basis!" She adjusted the veil that hid the disease scars on her face and winked at me over the top of it.
"Habene, he knows I don't mean anything bad by it!" he snapped, popping out his prosthetic eyeball by slapping the back of his head and sticking it in his mouth like a gobstopper. "We're old friends now!" he said with a bulge in his cheek.
"And that is still disgusting, old man," I added.
"Hah! See, they wouldn't say that. They'd probably gouge out an eye and get a fake one themselves just so they could fit in. No, I don't mean that literally," he said at our shocked expressions. "But they didn't even blink when I did it. Usually, people react in some way, especially the first time. Not them, though."
"Control or controlled?" I wondered aloud.
"They ain't under no spell," Kril added. "I paid them a visit earlier while you were, um, reuniting with Fay." I didn't speak, but I sent a command down the thread to my old mentor, and he slapped himself on the stomach three times. "Obviously they're under that spell, you arse. Could you dictate my behaviour from a thousand miles away?" he snapped in annoyance.
"Only in very general ways. Be nice, be charming. That kind of thing." I shrugged. "If they've got the scarlett letters, they're under control and aren't freemen." It was the wrong thing to say, I knew it as soon as the words left my mouth. Lips tightened and eyes narrowed at the reminder of the liberty they had all given up in exchange for magic and power.
I stared at the fire, ignoring the increasingly vocal spectators around Jandak as he attempted to drink the other man under the table. The smoke caught in my eyes, but I ignored it. I had to choose. If Jeremy could be made to serve my goals, an alliance was necessary. If he were more of a monster than the deity that I suspected was really called Lust, or something like that, I'd have to find another way. Patricia was the key. She had to stay here, one way or the other.
"They're here," Jagapan said, causing me to look up as his armsman returned with our guests. Three men and three women.
The men wore simple tunics and short, normal clothing among the tribes. However, they made it look good. Muscles flowed, smooth skin glistened in the firelight. The vainest man back home would curl up in envy on seeing them. I took an immediate dislike to them on general principle.
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The women didn't walk, they flowed. Simple dresses that reached their ankles, with high collars above plunging necklines, set them apart from the women of the tribes. As they stopped between me and the fire, the light behind them showed just how diaphenous their dresses were, and cast shadowy outlines of the perfect forms beneath. I heard Fay and Haldene hiss softly as all the newcomers bowed.
"It is unusual to look down on a king on his throne," said one of the women. She had chestnut hair that flowed down her back to her waistline. None of them bowed. "I am Shu. I come bearing greetings from my lord."
"Mond. And your friends?" I asked gruffly. Pretty girls always seemed to get their own way in both worlds.
"My fellow Concubines are Prandi and Jinsi." The other women, both equally exquisite in their own way, slightly nodded their heads at me.
"I am Kanash. My brothers are Lanash, Janash, and we appear to have mislaid Panash!" the tallest man said with a chuckle.
"I'm right here, brother!" called the stranger who had challenged Jandak. He no longer looked like a tribesman; his skin had darkened slightly, and his hair was cut short and neat like his comrades. "Whoa! Easy, friend Jandak! I meant no disrespect!" My friend had risen to his feet and gripped the blade on his belt. "A simple trick! I concede the battle! Jandak of the Mondyn is the champion of ale!"
The crowd roared in appreciation and began to congratulate Jandak, who was staring flatly at his former competitor. Panash grinned, perfect teeth flashing, and offered a warrior's clasp across the table strewn with empty bottles and jars. Jandak glared but reluctantly offered the grip, tightening his hand until Panahsh winced theatrically.
"And much stronger than I! Please, share out the spirits I couldn't manage between you!" He turned and strode over to join his siblings, at least I assumed they were brothers in the familial sense, followed by a still scowling Jandak.
"Lord Mond! Or Raymond, as you were before. My lord is most impressed with your efforts!" Panash began, but Kril interrupted him with a snort.
"What does your lord know about such faraway happenings?" snapped the old man.
"Well, we all receive the messages from the gods when Lord Mond claims the life of an Exile," Panash replied affably.
"The threat of the Dead King and the Pirate has ended. Something all right-thinking people should celebrate," added Jinsi, her short black hair swaying as she nodded emphatically. "Your lord has done the world a great service!"
"The Lord of Roses wishes to extend a hand of peace. An olive branch, as you might say in English?" Hearing this alien from another world say the word English with very nearly correct pronunciation made me blink furiously. How much had Jeremy shared with people he sent off to wander the world?
"Thornton. Roses. Sworn to Aphrodite. Let me guess, he has an apple motif as well?" I asked with a sneer.
"A golden apple is on his personal banner. An alliance must always be based on mutual interests, no?" asked Shu with a gentle smile.
"And where might the interests of the tribes and your Lord meet?" Fay demanded. She rose and paced around the women, looking them up and down as she went. She reached out and snatched up Prandi's hand, turning it over and running a finger across the girl's palm. With a snort, she let go and strode back to her chair.
"There can be only one. My Lord assumed you would understand the joke?" I smiled thinly at Panash. "But does it have to be that way? Does your lordship's situation need to be resolved urgently? Why not peace? A line in the sand, and mutual respect, would be of great benefit to everyone in your alliance, and all of my Lord's subjects."
"Why make war when you can make love?" Jinsi chimed in with a delicate laugh.
"So that's it? We agree on a border and keep to ourselves?" I demanded, ignoring the woman.
"Alas, the Lady in the Tower has other designs. Our talents lie in pleasure and art, not violence, and we are suffering at the hands of her magicks and wizards. Cities wiped away by fire or encased in ice. Thousands have fallen in her mad quest to be the last one standing among you. The Petal King asks for your aid. We can–"
"You want us to march east?" demanded Jagapan. "You didn't mention this before."
"We didn't mention many things, chieftain," Kanash said quickly. The other three brothers had settled into positions behind the women.
"Why should I intrude on your war? I can wait for one to kill the other and then deal with the remaining forces of the victor," I followed up.
"Why should ten thousand flowers fail to bloom? I was assured you had not succumbed to the madness of a Gatherer of Souls. Perhaps you are not like my lord, and more like the Lady," Panash stepped in angrily.
This was bad theatre. I knew they were full of shit; they knew I knew they were full of shit.
"Show me your real faces," I ordered. "It's bad form to pretend to be something you aren't and ask to be trusted."
The women recoiled and gasped while the men glared angrily at me.
"Lord Mond, these are now our true faces. We can appear as we wish for a time. It is a hybrid of the Light and Life affinities that all Beauties choose, but these are now our true forms," Shu said softly. She sounded wounded by my insinuation.
"No. What did you look like before?"
"Lord. We have respected your ways, simple though they are. I would ask that you respect ours. While we can skindance, and are forever enhanced by the blessings of our lord and she who lusts, we will not bend to this request. If you wish to see what skindancers of our skill can do, I would like to offer one of the Concubines for a private examination?" I wasn't dumb enough to fall for that. I was hardly tempted to let a shapeshifting maybe-assassin into my tent for a bit of nookie. If the Concubine didn't kill me, Fay certainly would.
"I will decline the offer. What forces does he need?" I asked.
"Mond! How can you–" Kril began, but I silenced him with a waved hand. I was going to pay for that. I could foresee an extremely grumpy and bitter Dreamer in my future.
"You are missing out on unearthly delights, sir. Perhaps your Dreamer might appreciate some company under the furs tonight? I would be very happy to help him relax," Shu offered with a wink. Kril spat at her feet. I hoped they had learned enough about tribal culture to understand that spitting was like a comma to these people.
"I think he's good as well. What does Thornton want?" I demanded. I was getting tired of this. I would hardly say that the tribes were 'good' people in the classical sense, but they were direct in their brutality and honesty. These fuckers felt slimy, despite their aesthetics.
"Ten thousand riders, half as many legionaries. Our Lord has scouts and many eyes watching the Scholars. If you head to Karpath, another sect will meet you and guide you to where your forces are needed," said Panash flatly. The anger in his voice was barely concealed.
"They're desperate, Mond," sneered Jagapan. "What are they offering in exchange?" His eye and empty socket switched back to the foreigners, and the women flinched slightly.
"We could fix your eye, for a start. No more gaping scar in your face to scare the children!" snapped Jinsi.
"I like it like this." He spat out his prosthetic and rubbed it on his tunic before pushing it into the empty socket. "Our scars are what make us unique. They aren't meant to be wiped away."
"Why make others suffer at the sight of you?" asked Janash, stepping past the Concubines and glaring at the chief. Jagapan just smirked back at the man.
"What are you offering in return for our assistance?" I barked and they flinched at the sudden volume.
"What do you want? Treasure, Beauties, slaves, trade rights? They are all on the table if you agree to assist in the war," said Shu hurriedly. The men kept being undercut by the women. The Concubines were the real ambassadors, I concluded. The men were there to deal with backwards people, where women weren't allowed to hold power.
Alas, they had misread my people. While the chiefs were all male, their primary advisor, without exception, was their wives. Hidden power was arguably more dangerous than open strength, and with their offers to bed Kril and me, they had set the powers behind the thrones against them.
I stood up, and finally, I was the one looking down on them. "I will consider your generous offer. Fay, please ensure our guests are kept entertained. I'll give you my answer in the morning. I have something to do tonight."
You're sure this will work? sent Glimpse from a hundred miles to the north.
It should do.
"I'll be back shortly. Fay, it won't be so long this time, I promise." She smiled up at me and nodded, crossing her arms across her stomach.
Tazca had tried to teach me many things I just wasn't strong enough to do yet. I needed to absorb more of his power, and that meant embodying his idea in the minds of more mortals. I essentially had to be seen being a god of murder, a god who lurks in the shadows.
I released my aura carefully, and the air near me flickered with near-invisible blades. I narrowed them down, bringing them closer to my skin and increasing the effort I put into them. Everyone around me flinched and looked around nervously. The physical effects were limited to a few inches from my body, but the psychological effects spread out around me. I was the fear of the dark. The knowledge that you're being hunted, that you're helpless before the blade from the shadows. For the first time on a mortal realm, I embraced what I had become.
Jagapan crowed like an angry cockerel as Kril cackled like a madman. The emissaries backed away, glancing behind them. The tribesmen and women had all bowed their heads. There was no direct threat, just an overwhelming impression of one.
The blades sliced into my body, thin lines of blue and gold spreading across my skin as my clothes fell apart in neat squares a couple of millimeters wide. At the same time, I forced my aura down the bond with Glimpse and spread it out around him. Cubes of me vanished and reappeared next to the crow.
In a couple of seconds, I had leapt from the fireside to a spot just outside the camp of the first rebel tribe. I fell to my knees as the wounds healed, dirt grinding against my knees. The air smelled different. It smelled like home.
"The steppe." I ran my hands through the knee-high grass as I gathered myself.
The clothes didn't make it.
"Yeah." I pulled another pair of trousers and a tunic from a storage ring. "Didn't really think they would, to be honest. It's like chopping something up and sending it down a pipe to be rebuilt. I'm just lucky there wasn't a fly that accidentally came with me," I grunted as I pulled the trousers on.
They are on the other side of this hill. You are within their outer patrols already. You can do this teleportation to anywhere?
"Nah. Just where you and Wilson are. I can't channel my aura into anything that isn't god-forged. Yet. " I flexed my toes in the grass and set off around the hill, not bothering to try and hide.
"Are you lost, friend?" called the first warrior I bumped into. I was barely a hundred metres from the barricade that ran around the tents and wagons. So much effort put into teaching them some basic fucking security procedures, all forgotten the moment they ran off. Idiots. I kept walking towards him, rolling up my left sleeve as I went.
"I am Mond, chosen of Aresk, and I bear the war god's mark. I am going to speak to your chief."
He peered at my shoulder, then drew his club in his right hand, dagger in his left.
"That isn't Aresk's mark, and we spit on the false warlord!" he snapped, lunging for me. I caught the club in my right hand and yanked it out of his grip, throwing it to the side. I was entirely focused on holding my arm so I could get a look at the mark.
Where I'd had a spear behind a shield with two gold dots above it, I now had a dagger, blade pointing up my arm, surrounded by four dots. The mark was all black, but the colour moved slightly, like shadows flowing under moonlight. I flicked a foot out, careful to limit the damage I might do to the merely human man, but launching him away from me with the blow.
"Huh. That's new."