Richard Knaak - Land of the minotaurs

Kaz found himself smiling also. At times Ganth had been even less inclined to the ways of their people than he was. During the long years of enslavement to Crynus and the ogres, he had dared to protest the way his children were more or less taken from their parents so that they could be "properly" trained by approved minotaurs. For two years after, Gladiator had been sent on a deadly voyage. Another time, Ganth and his crew had actually been stripped of their vessel and put into ranks marching westward during the second great campaign toward Solamnia. Somehow, Ganth had persevered and recovered Gladiator again, only to be sent on another mission of great danger.

Now Gladiator was lost, along with Kyri, his mate.

"Dastrun gave me this 'prestigious' post when they brought me and three other survivors back two years ago." Ganth snorted as he led the pair to a simple bench and table. "Should be something left to eat here." He banged his fist on the table. Moments later a young female, lithe and tawny, stepped out. Ganth did not wait for her to speak. "Give me whatever you can rustle up, lass, then you can go back to listening behind the door."

She gave him a disdainful look, but obeyed his commands. Her eyes lingered on the kender as she worked, and it was not until she vanished through the doorway again that Kaz felt comfortable.

"Dastrun's patriarch of the clan now," Ganth commented as he tore apart a piece of dry bread. "Master Hestrith died a year ago, but Dastrun was running things before that, I've heard. When Hestrith passed away, the emperor stepped in and said that, due to the course our people were taking, it was necessary for him to appoint a patriarch with the vitality and dedication needed to help see that course to the end. The high priest and the circle sanctioned the appointment, and that was that."

"The emperor chose Dastrun? As our new patriarch?" As with the emperor, the patriarch of the clan-who could also be a matriarch should a female achieve the position- was chosen by rite of combat. A council of elders in the clan usually approved any such match. Emperors had never dared interfere with such important clan matters.

"The high priest and the circle sanctioned it. That was that. No one protested. They were too shocked, I think."

Dastrun was a cousin of Ganth's. Dastrun and his ilk were more supportive of the emperor and the Supreme Circle than Ganth and his family had ever been. Many years ago, Hestrith had hinted that he would have preferred giving up his position to one of Ganth's line, but after Kaz and his father had disappeared, it was inevitable that Dastrun would succeed the patriarch. Dastrun was a clan champion whose ranking was exceeded only by that achieved by Kaz. His claim to the leadership of the clan was legitimate, but there should have been more debate and the ritual of combat. That was how it was done.

Kaz had a twinge of guilt that he was partly responsible. His staying away had helped put Clan Orilg in his distant cousin's grip. The deadly politics that had developed in the empire since the influence of the Dark Queen's minions was one of the reasons why he had stayed away. Instead of achieving their status through honor and strength, too many like Dastrun had reached it through guile and deceit.

"You're staring off into the sea, Lad. You've changed. You were always more willing to jump into the fray. What happened?"

It should have been Kaz asking questions. He wanted to know what Ganth had been doing all these years and how he had survived at all. Yet, instead he related his own story, beginning with his battle with his ogre captain, his meeting with Huma, and the change in his life caused by the legendary knight. Delbin had heard most of it many times before, but he still listened, enraptured. Ganth was silent, save for the occasional grunt.

When Kaz was done, his father finally unleashed a startling roar of laughter so loud it might have been heard all the way to Morthosak. "You've led a quiet life, haven't you? By the Just One's Horns, Kaz! You make me proud of you! I wish I could have seen all of that, or at least met this knight! He sounds like a warrior true, not like these puppets who now command our people."

"Huma was the greatest warrior, man or minotaur, that I have ever known."

Ganth ceased laughing. His eyes narrowed, and, in a more serious tone, he added, "I see. Then I truly wish I had met him. There are few such warriors these days, if I'm any judge."

"Father, about you-"

"Forget me for now, Kaz. I spent several years on an island with half a dozen others, the remainder of a good crew. Some of them perished there, but I and a couple of others survived… not that it seemed to matter much with your mother gone. I kept thinking about the bunch of you, though, and that kept me going. That's all you need to know., Kaz. You and the rest of our young kept me going… and now I'm glad I survived, because I can see that I was never meant to fight the final-battle at sea. There's too great a battle going on right here in Nethosak."

"What do you mean?"

"Didn't you wonder, Lad, how I happen to be around just when you arrived?"

"I assumed it was by chance… but from the way you're talking, I gather it was not."

Ganth smiled grimly, revealing a good set of strong teeth. "I learned long ago that there's little chance in the world. Sometimes I think some god, probably old Sargas himself, is still out to plague me."

Kaz nodded, interested to find out that he and his sire thought similarly.

"No, I wasn't there by chance. I've been watching for you for more than two weeks, ever since he was taken."

Ganth shook his head. His horns were even longer than Kaz's, but years at sea had weathered the tips, making them rounder. "I thought I'd never see you again, and then I found out that Dastrun's bunch has known where you were for the past couple years."

While not completely surprised to hear that the clan had been keeping track of him, Kaz felt a growing unease. If Dastrun had been monitoring his movements, it was possibly because the new patriarch was keeping a wary eye on a potential rival. He supposed that as long as he had remained at the settlement Dastrun had not cared, but if the patriarch discovered that he was now in Nethosak, things might be more precarious.

"Should I be worried about that?"

"Probably not. Dastrun's not going to undermine his already shaky position by acting against a clan member of your reputation, Lad. Not directly, anyway. You've made the clan proud of you even if it doesn't always admit it. In fact, you've become something of a legend to more than just Orilg."

"I could live without that."

"Aye, I know that feeling well." Ganth drank some wine, then tore off a piece of meat. Neither Kaz nor Delbin could keep pace with him. "I knew you'd come. One thing that hasn't changed is that you're loyal to your friends… deathly loyal sometimes. When they took him, I knew you'd be by before long. Of course, I'd have done the same thing."

"Hecar?" Kaz forgot the food and drink. He rose and leaned forward, hopeful and anxious at the same time. "You're talking about Hecar, aren't you, Father?"

"The same Hecar whom we both knew. Aye, Kaz. Your friend and mine. A clan member, too, though Dastrun won't help him, especially as there's no real blood relation. He's got to know about what's happened, but against the high priest and the emperor he won't do a blessed thing."

"Where is he? Where is Hecar?"

"Sit yourself down, Lad. You're squirming around like a dragon shark about to dine after a bloody sea battle. Not as patient as I thought, though I can't blame you, really. Just give me a chance. You won't be going anywhere tonight, anyway. Not there, at least."

Kaz forced himself to calm down. "Where is he, Father?"