Paul Kemp: Realms of War

Keeping hold of the bottle-not that it had done him much good before-Kemas clambered to his feet. "I don't understand any of this."

The blond man waved for him to sit down on the cot and dropped back onto the stool. "Then let me explain, starting with the basics. Are you aware that the zulkirs have gone to war with one another?"

"I heard you and the autharch say something about a war, but I couldn't take it all in."

"Well, here's the nub of it: Szass Tam wants to make himself supreme ruler of Thay, and the other archwizards refuse to accept him as their overlord. By and large, Delhumide and the other northern tharchs stand with the pretender, while the southern provinces support the rest of the council."

"But what does that have to do with the temple? Why did the autharch attack us?"

"The Church of Kossuth stands with the council, as well it should. Szass Tam betrayed and murdered scores of your priests and monks. The news just hadn't reached you in this remote location. But it did reach your autharch, and he decided to wipe out your enclave before you could strike at him or his masters."

"Judging from the way you talk, you're against Szass Tam, too."

"Yes. My real name is Bareris Anskuld, and I serve in the Griffon Legion of Pyarados. I'm on a scouting mission to find out what Szass Tam's forces are up to in Delhumide and who still stands against them. I ran into the real Lord Uupret on the trail, and when I realized I could use his ring and documents to examine Szass Tam's troops and fortresses up close, I killed him and assumed his identity."

"Didn't he have a company of guards protecting him, like the autharch asked about?"

"Yes, but I had my griffon, my magic, and a formidable comrade who dogs my steps whenever I'm not pretending to be somebody else."

Even so, fighting an important noble's retinue sounded liked a desperate undertaking. "Aren't you afraid of meeting someone who knew the real Lord Uupret?"

Bareris shrugged.

"And if you want people to think you're just an ordinary noble in the service of the tharchion, wouldn't it be wise to shave your head? So you don't look… peculiar?"

"I'm a bard. If I offer an explanation for my hair, I can make people believe it, just as I made the autharch think it reasonable that one of his master's chief deputies is traveling alone."

"I suppose." But it seemed clear that Bareris was taking risks that no prudent spy would have chanced, as if some self-destructive part of him wanted his enemies to penetrate his disguise.

The blond man scowled. "That's enough blather about me. The night won't last forever, and we need to talk about how to save your temple."

Kemas swallowed. "Do you think it can be saved? I. . I told the autharch the truth. I told him everything."

"I know. I laid a charm on you to compel you."

"What?"

"Keep your voice down!"

"Why would you do that if you're really the autharch's enemy?"

"Because I judged that you were going to talk eventually in any case. Was I wrong?"

Kemas wanted to deny it, but the words wouldn't come. Instead, his eyes stung, and he squeezed them shut to hold in tears. "No," he whispered.

"You don't need to be ashamed. Torture breaks nearly everyone in the end."

"Well, you should have let it break me!" Kemas didn't know why that would have been preferable, but he felt it nonetheless.

"Had it gone on much longer, it might have injured you badly enough that I couldn't heal you, and that wouldn't do. I have a task for you."

Kemas took a deep breath. "What?"

"After you gave the autharch what he wanted, he convened a council of war and made a battle plan. I used my influence to keep it from being as cunning a strategy as it might have been, though it's possible I didn't need to." For just an instant, Bareris's lips twitched up at the corners. Kemas realized it was the only time he'd seen the bard display any semblance of a smile. "Contrary to his own opinion, the autharch isn't a subtle man. If he were, he would have realized that your temple likely hadn't heard the tidings from the south and tried first to take the place by trickery."

"So the battle plan is worthless?"

"No. My magic couldn't accomplish that much. It simply isn't as good as it could be. But here's the real point. I now know exactly what resources the autharch commands, and precisely how he intends to employ them. It's information the temple's defenders can put to good use, once you carry it to them."

Kemas stared at him. "Me? I'm a prisoner!"

"It's dark, and I pilfered a legionnaire's cloak and tunic for you to wear. You should be able to sneak out of camp and back to the shrine."

"But you can cast spells. Your chances are better than mine. Why don't you do it?"

"I'm needed here. The autharch's troops aren't elite warriors, but they look fairly capable, they outnumber your temple guards, and they have a couple of necromancers to lend magical support. I can improve your chances by lurking in their midst and then lashing out at the right moment. I'll kill the wizards and proceed from there."

Once again, Kemas could only infer that his companion had little regard for his own safety. "Is protecting our little shrine so important that it makes sense for you to run such a risk?"

"Anything that hinders Szass Tam's forces for even an instant is worthwhile. I wrote down the autharch's plan while you slept. Are you ready to take the parchment and go?"

Kemas swallowed. "No."

Bareris frowned. "Do you think I'm trying to trick you?"

"No, I believe what you told me. It's… you heard what the autharch said about me. I'm a deserter."

"And so?"

"I'm afraid of all this! I want to get away from the danger, not put myself back in the middle of it."

"Yet the temple means something to you, or you wouldn't have resisted torture for as long as you did."

"I suppose."

"How long did you serve there?"

"Nearly my whole life. My family's Mulan, but we don't have much land or money, either, and I'm a younger son. My father enlisted me in the Order of the Fire Drake-the sworn protectors of Kossuth's holy shrines and relics-thinking it would make a good life for me."

"Did it?"

"Yes. I made friends, and I liked the masters and teachers." He sneered. "I even liked the martial training and thought I was becoming a fine warrior. I imagined I'd do well if I ever had to fight a real battle."

"But until the autharch came, you never did."

"No. The temple's in the middle of settled territory and has walls like a real fortress. Nobody's bothered it for generations. The garrison was mainly there for the sake of tradition."

"Tell me what happened during the battle."

"I was on the wall with my bow. I was about to start shooting, and then an arrow flew up from below and hit Abrihando-the fellow next to me-in the chest. He fell down, thrashed, and screamed for me to help him. But I'm no healer. I couldn't do anything. I just stared at him until he stopped moving.

"Afterward, I wanted to crouch down behind a merlon and stay there so an arrow wouldn't hit me, too. Still, I made myself shoot a few times. Then zombies ran toward the foot of the wall with ladders. Our shafts couldn't stop them."

"No," Bareris said, "you generally have to cut them to pieces."

"People scurried to shove the ladders over backward, but some of the zombies made it onto the top of the wall anyway. They smelled rotten, and their eyes shined yellow. They swung their axes, and more of our folk fell, some shrieking, some already dead.

"I put down my bow and drew my sword. I really did mean to go and help. But then something even more horrible than a zombie climbed over the top of the wall. It was a dead man, too, but with its belly ripped open and lengths of gut hanging out and waving around like snakes. They even had mouths full of fangs."