L. Modesitt - Mage-Guard of Hamor

"They're all graybeards, ser," offered Fysett from his mount. "Every last one of them."

Rahl also studied their hands. Several had welts and scars around the wrists, and the calluses on their hands and fingers were relatively light.

"Shackle marks, I'd wager," offered Fysett, looking over Rahl's shoulder.

After a moment, Rahl nodded. That would make sense. "I need to check our wounded. Then we'll head back."

"Yes, ser."

"Oh… did they have mounts?"

"Yes, ser. They were tied back in the trees. Most of them sorry sway-backs. They could carry packs, though."

"We can use them for that." Rahl walked toward the wounded troopers.

One man had taken a shaft in the shoulder, and another in the thigh. Neither wound had gushed blood, and there were only slight amounts of chaos. Rahl did his best to remove that chaos. The effort did return his headache from merely a dull ache to a more active and sharp-edged throbbing. He didn't know how Deybri and the other healers stood it, day after day. He smiled wryly. He did; he'd seen and sensed the pain and the exhaustion, and the determination to keep healing.

He looked at the last trooper he'd tried to help. "Keep the wound clean. You'll go back to the main force until you're stronger, but have the healers there keep checking it."

"Yes, ser."

Rahl remounted and rode to the front of the squads, now lined up in double file and ready to return to Third Company.

"Ready to ride, ser," offered Fedeor.

"You have all the prisoners and all the bows and quivers-and their horses?" He supposed he was being callous by not burying the dead, but the rocky sandstone wasn't suitable, and they didn't have more than a spade per squad.

"Yes, ser."

"Let's go." He urged the gelding downhill, back toward Drakeyt and first squad.

When they neared the other troopers, Rahl was careful to announce their presence. "Fourth and fifth squads returning!" he yelled, using order to boost the words through the pines.

"Squads returning," someone echoed.

Rahl still was wary until he could sense that the waiting troopers were ready with weapons but holding position. He rode through the last of the pines between him and Drakeyt. "Mission accomplished."

"Did any of them run this way?" asked the captain. "

No." Rahl reined up. That was another thing he should have noticed. "None of them tried to run at all, even when it was clear that we had them trapped."

"None?"

Rahl shook his head. "We have two of our men wounded. They should recover, but they'll have trouble keeping up with us. We'll send them back with the prisoners."

Drakeyt raised his eyebrows. "

There were three. But all of them were under chaos compulsions. They might even have been trained as archers under those compulsions. I don't know how it was done, but the overcommander might be able to find out. Also, they were all graybeards, or they would have been if they'd had beards."

"Why would…"

"Prisoners or roadworkers, I'd guess. Not many people in Merowey would really care if they disappeared, and those that would were probably told that the men were better off than if they'd been caught by a mage-guard."

"Would they have been?"

"By most mage-guards, probably," admitted Rahl. "Most who resist capture get flamed on the spot."

"Don't the Codex breakers know that?"

"Some do. Theft and battery and killing are all offenses against order. Everyone's taught that." Rahl shrugged tiredly. "I wasn't exactly the perfect child growing up, but even I knew that." Of course, a small voice within him pointed out, he'd still gotten away with killing a Jeranyi pirate in Land's End… but only because no one had cared that a pirate helping a dishonest factor had died.

"You don't sound convinced," Drakeyt said. "And you're a mage-guard."

"It's better than the alternatives," Rahl replied. Was it? Or was he just justifying things? "We'd better head back to the road."

Drakeyt nodded. "To the rear, ride! Back to the road!"

Five more days of scouting brought Third Company within ten kays of Helstyra-another river town. According to Drakeyt's maps, perused by the two officers as they paused for a short rest, the town sat on the west bank of the Awhut River. There was a large half bow lake east of the river to the east, the ends of the lake little more than a kay from the river. Between where Third Company was and the town was a line of low hills. Beyond them, the maps showed that the road ran straight into Helstyra.

"Messengers coming forward, sers!" came the call from Quelsyn.

Rahl turned in the saddle to watch as two troopers rode along the shoulder of the road toward them. He recognized the pair as having been sent with reports and the archer prisoners, as well as the wounded, back to the marshal and Taryl five days earlier.

"Sers! Dispatches!"

"I'm not certain how welcome those might be," murmured Drakeyt.

Rahl smiled faintly at the captain's words, but just accepted the envelope extended by the trooper. Drakeyt took his dispatch as well.

After breaking the seal, opening the folded sheet, and seeing the first words of his dispatch, Rahl frowned. Why had Taryl addressed it to "Senior Mage-Guard Rahl" when all others had been addressed to him as Rahl? He continued to read, still puzzling over the salutation.

The rebel archers whom you sent for further interrogation proved most useful, not in what they revealed, which was little more than you already had determined and reported, but in confirming the precise nature of those mage-guards who have shifted their loyalties to the rebel Golyat. The means by which the rebels were trained and dispatched result from a technique developed by a most senior mage-guard. At the time of its discovery, the Triad banned the further dissemination and/or use of the technique. It has not been used heretofore, because any senior mage-guard can discover that it has been used, as did you, and, given the high-level skills required, it is unlikely that many mage-guards are capable of employing the technique. You might recall that you encountered one of originator's trusted subordinates in the course of historical research sometime back, and you can understand the delicacy of this discovery, but it is necessary that you understand fully the dangers involved in any personal meetings with such individuals, even under the guise of a truce or armistice, unlikely as that may now seem.

Rahl understood most clearly the two levels of messages conveyed. What he did not understand was why Taryl had chosen to reveal the identity of the originator-unless Taryl wanted to make sure that someone else knew. That thought chilled Rahl. He continued to read.

Because of the importance of your discovery, as well as the effectiveness and efficiency of scouting and road-clearing accomplished by you and Captain Drakeyt, I also wanted to commend you both, and to let you know that the marshal and the Emperor have been apprised of your good work, and that you should not be unduly influenced by those who do not understand what you have accomplished. Lack of understanding carries its own penalties.

With the last words and the formal full signature, Rahl understood the salutation. He looked across to Drakeyt, who was not only frowning at the dispatch he held, but seething within.

"I take it that the submarshal was less than complimentary," Rahl said dryly.

"You read it." Drakeyt eased his mount closer to Rahl and practically thrust the dispatch at the mage-guard.

Rahl took it and began to read.

Captain Drakeyt-

I am amazed and astonished that you bothered even to spend the time and effort to dispatch your latest rebel prisoners. Given their imbecilic nature, there is no question of your success, but great question as to how you managed to incur any casualties at all.