The Brightest Shadow, page 53
When he reached the soldiers' tents, he found things more lively, though there were still injured warriors everywhere. Given the emergency, Iralin had focused on their core warriors, resulting in many more amputations and soldiers left to live or die based on their own strength. Not ideal, but Aryabaus had sent them without healers or supporting warriors - his priorities were clear.
Rhuvab and another Catai sat on opposite sides of a fire, conversing loudly. Seeing the second warrior, Kolanin remembered him: his name was Garrok; he had been assigned to them at the same time Aryabaus had sent his soldiers. Kolanin knew little about him other than that he seemed to be a traditional Towd Catai, recently through his rebirth and uncomfortable with his over-sized body.
"If this Hero is so much of a problem, just kill him!"
"We did that," Rhuvab said. "Three times. More keep showing up."
"Think there's something to the Legend, then?" Garrok frowned and tapped his mace against his shoulder slowly. "Figured it was just a story."
"I thought so too, at first. But he's really not just a cocky human, there's more to it. The way I figure it, the Legend must be partially true, but we're only hearing the human side. If we want to stop it, we need to find the mansthein version of the Legend and finish him off for good."
"You think something like that actually exists?"
Rhuvab shrugged. "Must be something. We know the human version can't be completely accurate, because I've never heard anything about Heroes showing up and dying left and right. There's a real Legend there, that's obvious, we just can't see it yet."
"Huh. Wish I'd arrived in time to see more of them."
"You might get your chance. The most recent one ran with his tail between his legs..."
Kolanin listened with increasing discomfort. The new Catai might not be familiar with the situation, but Rhuvab had seen so many of the events, he should have known better. It was just like the moments when Kolanin had tried to converse with humans swept up in the Hero's glory. They might be speaking directly to one another, yet nothing truly passed between them.
He had already identified that the Hero brought bloodlust to mansthein nearby, but that didn't concern him greatly. It could be resisted with mental discipline and might even be simply an advanced sein technique. After the battle he had warned every warrior capable of mental arts about it and some, like Hakkiv, had seemed to master the defensive skills quickly.
This, however... it was the first time he had heard mansthein speaking of the Legend the way the humans did. Not just a story, a focus of worship. Their reverential tone troubled him, forcing him to change his plans. He had wanted to discuss business with them, and now wanted to discuss their thoughts even more, yet he was sure that the conversation would only leave him frustrated. There was simply no energy left to endure such a thing.
Instead Kolanin turned back to the decaying heart of Ith Ire. He still had the papers Iralin had given him; perhaps he could work through those. Besides, staying in a central location would let him deal with business in a more organized fashion instead of forcing everyone to follow his wanderings.
Before he could get far, he spotted someone else approaching. Loravasik, still nursing an injury from one of the Coran fighters. He moved easily, however, and gave Kolanin a polite bow when he arrived.
"Seinan Kolanin, I bring news. We have received a messenger from Koreinan Aryabaus and he is expected to arrive soon."
"Then I'll get ready to greet him." Kolanin sighed and extended the papers to Loravasik. "Can you take these back to my office?"
The Catai warrior stiffened and did not move to take them. Kolanin was surprised for a moment before realizing, but then it was too late. "Seinan Kolanin, I am a Catai. I am not a messenger or aide."
"You're right, Laenan Loravasik. I apologize." With another Catai, Kolanin would have told him to swallow his pride and help. But he saw in Loravasik's eyes just how much his pride meant to him, and perhaps asking him to do a menial task so casually was disrespectful. Using "Laenan" had been somewhat risky, but Loravasik seemed to take it as it had been intended.
"No apology is necessary, Seinan Kolanin. But there is one other thing, if we have time before Seinan Aryabaus arrives. I have investigated the mines thoroughly, as you requested."
Kolanin had forgotten that he'd asked the Catai to do that - an order given when he had more energy and more hope. At that moment it seemed completely pointless, but he didn't want to discourage Loravasik's diligence. "And you discovered something important?"
"Two things, Seinan. First, the room discovered on the lowest level was mostly destroyed. It seemed to have been done by accident or in combat instead of intentionally."
So the panels with their carvings of the Legend were gone. Kolanin realized how easily he was thinking about the myths as the Legend and rubbed his face. It probably didn't matter, as Hakkiv had made copies of everything. "What was the second thing?"
"It was extremely well-hidden, in a false collapse in an unused tunnel, but I discovered the body of Safakiv. He appeared to have been murdered slowly and brutally."
"I see." Kolanin stared back, struggling to care. The disappearance of the man had been a security concern, but few had shed tears. It was well known, if not proven, that he liked to assault women, and he'd made few male friends in camp. Learning that he had been murdered was not a huge surprise, certainly less important than their other concerns.
Loravasik's mouth was set in grim victory, however. "He dishonored a Laenan woman, Seinan. This is little more than he deserved."
"Then you aren't seeking to find the murderer?"
"No, Seinan. If the murderer was human, they are likely dead or gone in any case. But I would like his name to be struck from the rolls of the honorable fallen and his record tarnished."
Kolanin stared back at him, wondering if there was no better solution. Those actions would do no harm to the dead man and might simply anger Feinan forces. Then again, it would be easy to get away with in the chaos of the aftermath. In the end, Kolanin had no strength to argue or find a better solution; he could only nod. "I will see it done, Laenan Loravasik."
"Thank you, Seinan." The Catai bowed low to him and then departed at a swift rate.
Right, Aryabaus was coming. Given the length of their conversation, he had likely come rather close. That was the last thing Kolanin wanted to deal with at the moment, but he had no choice. Zeitai Teirsan had promised he could be transferred if he resolved the Breilin situation, and Aryabaus was the key piece in that.
When Kolanin reached the edge of Ith Ire, he saw some dust in the distance and a dark form running toward them. Aryabaus, leading from the front as usual. He was remarkably fast, so Kolanin simply meditated for a time until the man arrived.
"Seinan Aryabaus. Welcome."
"Catainan Kolanin." His tone was much chillier than last time, but Aryabaus seemed to reserve most of his disdain for the chaos around him. "I received your news of what happened. Which way did the escapees travel?"
"They are long gone, surely you do not mean to pursue them...?"
"Which way, Catai?"
Swallowing his objections, Kolanin gestured. Aryabaus immediately began striding in that direction, forcing Kolanin to hurry to follow him. Though the pace Aryabaus set was not a challenge in terms of speed, Kolanin didn't have the heart to run. Fortunately, it seemed that Aryabaus was more interested in talking.
"This is not a pointless trip, Kolanin. And the sacrifices you endured in this miserable position were not wholly useless."
"I had hoped it would be successful. As I had hoped Bundlin would be successful." Kolanin hadn't intended to speak so honestly, he just had nothing left for polite lies. Aryabaus snorted.
"I respect what you have attempted, Kolanin, but your talents are wasted here. Perhaps we can make peace with humans in Younten Trathe or Fareshel, but central Breilin? Barbarians, little better than Feinan brutes. All they understand is force, so force is how I will reply to them."
"Perhaps you are right. How will we proceed from here?"
"My goal is to push aside secondary matters so that we can break the fortresses of East Corah once and for all." Aryabaus shifted to look at him thoughtfully. "I believe you would be best suited to deal with many of those secondary matters. You are better known to the humans involved and it suits you better than warfare in any case."
"Thank you, Seinan. What about the Coran resistance?"
Aryabaus walked silently for a time, eyes forward, but eventually answered. "They remain a great thorn in my side. Despite how frequently they prey on their own kind, they maintain considerable support among the humans and they are frustratingly effective. I have only succeeded in using our Teralanthan explosives once - after they realized I had more, they have been too successful at impeding my plans. Some of our human workers or messengers must be working with them."
"You can't limit yourself to mansthein staff?"
"I could, and I've made plans to cut staff to the bone and run a strictly military operation. But that would alert them as to how much we know, and it is too early for that. Besides, there is a good chance that they can be torn out root and stem, perhaps before the year is out."
That was clearly an invitation to ask questions. Aryabaus seemed vaguely pleased with himself, implying some secret. Kolanin didn't take the bait. Either he would get answers soon enough or he wouldn't.
After they went some distance, they reached the final point where anyone had tracked the fleeing humans. Even that had been wasted effort, given the violence behind them and the larger threat of the Coran resistance. Kolanin's attempts to restore order had been futile and both groups had escaped. There was a large mound of dark boulders ahead that was the last known landmark, so Kolanin gestured toward it.
"They were last seen traveling in this direction and it was suspected they stopped here, but they escaped us after that. We could have mounted a more concentrated effort to track them down, but we were spread thin at the time."
"That is not a concern at all, Seinan Kolanin." Aryabaus sped up, eagerly rushing toward the stones. Kolanin followed, too tired to be curious.
It did seem as though the humans had passed this way, based on a few discarded items. They seemed too obvious, perhaps intentionally placed to throw them off the track. Given how easily the humans had melted away, Kolanin was fairly certain that any attempt to track them or the resistance from here would prove fruitless.
That wasn't the reason he didn't help Aryabaus search, however. He simply found himself staring at the dark stone, worn smooth over time. They looked almost like the marble of the halls beneath Ith Ire, though these boulders had veins of blood red stone within them. It meant nothing to Kolanin, yet he couldn't take his eyes away.
"Aha!" The triumphant shout from Aryabaus barely raised his head. "My suspicions are vindicated."
Currently, Aryabaus was standing atop the mound. Kolanin jumped to join him, though his body felt heavy even as he soared through the air. He found Aryabaus staring down at several stones. They looked ordinary enough, light against the dark boulder. Only after staring for a while did Kolanin realize that they formed a Futhik letter. Just a letter, not one that meant anything to him.
"This secret cannot go far, but I trust you to keep it, Seinan Kolanin." Aryabaus shifted to stand closer to him and lowered his voice, though they were the only two men in the grasslands stretching in all directions. "This is a sign left by our hidden agent."
"Who was with them?" His mind worked on it slowly, then he shook his head. "You mean that there's a human aligned with us, and they voluntarily worked as a slave for so many days?"
"Possibly. The details are unclear." Though Aryabaus seemed extremely satisfied, a bit of irritation crept into his eyes. "I do not know how a human was convinced to work for us, or any details about them. Only that they were sent by the military, yet on the authority of another force - perhaps someone in the Senate? In any case, information about them and their true mission is not available, even to me."
"I see. But you were given more information regarding this symbol?"
"Exactly. I have been arguing for a hundred days that if we have such an embedded agent, they should be used to find and destroy the Coran resistance. It seems that the politicians finally listened to my logic. If the spy was able to infiltrate the resistance, they were to leave this symbol."
"Then... what?"
"We must be alert for a signal. It may take them a long time to safely get us information about the resistance's hiding spot, as the resistance has been very secure so far. But it will happen, I am sure of it. Eventually we will be able to pin them down, and once that happens, we can crush them."
Kolanin didn't respond, trying to find any emotional response to that. Given how brutal the resistance could be, its removal would probably be good for both mansthein and humans. But it would make it easier for Aryabaus to attack East Corah and bring violence and death to many more people. Once, he would have tried to weigh the casualties and determine if the cost could be justified.
Now, he simply stared back toward what was left of Ith Ire.
Chapter 40
-
"The Hero may be the heart of the Legend, but he is not the whole story. There are roles for all of us to play. Especially you, Uncle, since you have so much authority in Corah. All listen to your words, so you have the opportunity to lead us into the light of truth."
- excerpt from a letter written by Lady Karerela of East Corah
-
After days of darkness, the blindfold was finally pulled away. Tani blinked in the harsh torchlight, her eyes searching for something to orient herself. No sky, no grass, just rock. When they had passed into windless shade she had been afraid they had entered caverns - now they were deep inside.
They had traveled southwest at full speed, focused on escaping pursuers from Ith Ire. Eventually Veron met with the resistance leaders and came back with two choices: leave or be taken to their base blindfolded. Tani had hated the idea of being forced to travel blindfolded, but didn't want to be separated from the others. So she had simply tried to track their movements and ignore the unnecessary circles. Their exact location was unclear to her, though, and she'd become completely lost in the tunnels.
With nothing to mark their location, Tani instead looked to the others. Veron was nowhere to be seen, so instead they waited in a chamber with several Coran men she vaguely recognized from their early travels. It seemed that her blindfold had been removed first. Laeri stood beside her, fumbling against a cave wall in a bewildered sort of way. Melal was cursing and tugging at his blindfold while Slaten stood motionless.
Moving to Celivia, Tani helped her pull off her blindfold. The other woman glared at her the first instant it was pulled off, apparently not needing any time to adjust to the light. But a moment later her expression softened. That didn't make it exactly kind, but Tani was glad to be near her. They shifted to have their backs to the wall while the others' blindfolds were removed. When Slaten's was removed he bent to help Teren with hers and the girl immediately leapt to embrace him, whimpering.
Tani remembered when her master had blindfolded her and had her focus solely on her senses to first awaken her awareness of sein. There had been no fear then, it had even been exciting. That was no longer possible and Tani felt deeply glad that their blindfolded travel had ended. She'd tried to spend as much of that time near Celivia as possible, or Slaten if Celivia wasn't near - he wasn't exactly comforting, but it was reassuring to have a warrior she could trust nearby.
"Are you okay?" Celivia asked softly. Tani nodded.
"You think we're finally here? In their secret base? I lost track of how many times we looped."
"I don't think they added any unnecessary loops in the tunnels, so we must be deep into the caverns. They must be within a hill of some kind, because we didn't descend very far."
"The air doesn't smell too stale." Tani focused on her senses to see what she could glean from their environment. "I don't feel a breeze at all. It actually feels warmer and drier in here than it did outside - is that unusual?"
"I'm not sure about here, but caves are warmer than cold seasons and cooler than hot seasons. All it tells us is that this is a large cave system." Celivia's eyes slid over everything in sight more analytically than Tani's could. "I see why they don't trust anyone. They've clearly spent a long time adapting these caverns - this isn't a place they can simply abandon if necessary."
The stone around them looked normal enough to Tani, though she supposed the walls and especially floor were much smoother than the cave they'd used to hide through the long rains. Hopefully this one would be drier when they reached the short rains again.
"Oh dear, do you think we're prisoners?" Laeri came to huddle beside them, large eyes flickering everywhere. "I understand they have to keep it secret, but do they really not trust us? I wanted to see the outside again... do you think they'd let me go outside if I asked?"
Celivia shook her head. "Based on what Veron said, we'd need to earn that privilege."
"Oh... oh, I hope this was the right decision... do you think Veron is deeper inside?"
While Laeri fretted, Tani considered who to ask first. Some of the resistance fighters had seemed reasonable enough in their brief conversations, but most of them headed out of the chamber quickly instead of sticking around. Just when Tani was considering approaching one of them, a Coran warrior walked down the tunnel carrying a torch.
He was the man she'd fought over the airship shipment. Still short and muscular, with the well-kept beard she remembered, but he wore an eyepatch he hadn't before. Now that he wasn't actively attacking, she didn't find him so intimidating. While she wouldn't risk much on the bet, he seemed like he had some of a warrior's nobility to him.
"Welcome to the resistance. My name is Hanfel." He gave them all a broad smile. "I'm sorry you had to be brought here blindfolded, but we only survive because we keep our movements secret. If you're as good as Veron says, I'm sure you'll soon become trusted members of the resistance."
