Roger Taylor - The waking of Orthlund

‘They just rode into the village and hacked people down amp;mdashfor no reason?’ Eldric asked pointlessly, knowing the answer.

Jaldaric nodded.

Eldric slammed his hand on the table, then stood up, kicked his chair back, and walked over to the window.

Jaldaric looked at his father’s back and then at Yatsu, still sitting at the table, eyes fixed, unseeing, on the plans spread before him.

‘I don’t know whether I did the right thing, coming back myself.’ Jaldaric said hesitantly, to break the difficult silence. ‘Perhaps I should have waited for Hrostir myself amp;mdashsent the trooper back with the news…?’

His father waved his hand dismissively without turning.

‘You did right,’ Yatsu said, answering on Eldric’s behalf. His voice was controlled but uneasy, and his face was pale. ‘You’d no alternative but to bring back the news personally; and straight away.’

His eyes met Jaldaric’s. ‘You were also right not to intervene,’ he said. And the look on his face said, I understand your pain. The pain of watching.

Eldric turned to his son and, looking him up and down, nodded in self-reproach. ‘You’re tired, Captain. Go and rest,’ he said. ‘You’ve done well. If anything comes to you that you’ve not mentioned, you can tell us later.’

‘I’d rather go back and help,’ Jaldaric said anxiously.

Yatsu’s reply was unequivocal. ‘No,’ he said flatly. ‘You’re too tired. Go and rest. That’s an order. Hrostir will be looking after things, and we’ll send someone from here as well.’

Reluctantly, Jaldaric saluted and began walking to the door. As he reached it, he turned. ‘I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep,’ he said quietly. ‘When my mind goes quiet it fills up with… the sights… and the sounds. I don’t think I dare close my eyes.’

Yatsu stood up and walked over to him. ‘Only time is going to help you with that,’ he said softly, but holding his gaze. ‘But go and talk to Hylland. He’ll help you relax if nothing else.’

Jaldaric searched the Goraidin’s face, childlike for a moment. ‘Why would anyone do a thing like that?’ the young man asked. ‘And where could they have found people amp;mdashFyordyn people amp;mdashto do it?’

‘We’ll all think about the why,’ Yatsu answered im-mediately. ‘It’s important.’ Then, meeting Jaldaric’s eyes with the compassion of a man faced with killing a favourite animal. ‘As for the people.’ He hesitated. ‘Those seeds are rooted in us all. Oklar merely tills the soil.’

Jaldaric’s face wrinkled in pain and doubt.

‘There’s no easy answer, Jal,’ Yatsu said, then, slap-ping the young man’s arm gently, ‘Go and find Hylland.’

When Jaldaric had left, Eldric and Yatsu looked at one another. Eldric’s face was pained and questioning.

‘He’s coping,’ Yatsu said in reply to the unasked question.

Eldric turned away from him. ‘It’s easier to face things yourself than watch your children face them,’ he said. ‘And so much has happened to him over these last months.’

Yatsu nodded sympathetically. ‘He’s coping,’ he repeated. ‘Just like we all did in our time. And he’s your son. He’ll come through.’ The two men’s eyes met. ‘Just like we all have.’

Reluctantly, Eldric the father set his concerns aside for the moment and turned to face the new reality of the struggle for Fyorlund.

‘Innocent people slaughtered,’ he said. ‘I can hardly believe it. And for no reason!’

‘Not for no reason, Lord,’ Yatsu said, almost irrita-bly, as he sat down at the table again. ‘You know that. Dan-Tor has never done anything for no reason. The patrol was too large and orderly, the deed too foul, and Ledvrin too far from Vakloss for it to have been some piece of… random savagery by a few Mathidrin troopers. Besides, we know Dan-Tor keeps the Mathidrin well fettered and, from what we hear, they in their turn control the Militia. This deed was coldly done, and done for some very specific reason.’

‘What, pray?’ Eldric said, bridling a little at the re-buke in Yatsu’s tone.

Yatsu looked at him. ‘I think you know full well, Lord,’ he said.

Eldric sat down heavily and leaned forward. Idly he picked up an ornamental pen intricately carved with an abstract scrolled pattern.

‘It might be a probe,’ he said slowly. ‘To test our response. But a lesser contact would have served that purpose.’

Yatsu watched him.

‘It can only be a lure,’ Eldric went on, his face grim. ‘A lure to draw us out from our estates and towards Vakloss.’ He laid the pen down gently and, leaning back in his chair, let his hand fall unheeded on to his sword hilt. ‘To start the war,’ he concluded softly. ‘Civil war.’

Yatsu made no comment and, for some time, the room was silent except for the subdued hubbub of the castle’s routine daily activity percolating through the stout wooden doors.

‘No overtures for negotiations,’ Eldric mused, half to himself. ‘No formal messengers riding to and fro under flags of truce. Just a simple, "See how I massacre your people, Lords. What will you do now?"’ He scowled angrily.

Yatsu frowned in return, as if Eldric’s talking were disturbing him, but he did not speak. Eldric looked at him. ‘And if it is a lure,’ he said, ‘and we don’t respond? He’ll probably sack more villages, massacre more people. More and more, until we do respond.’

Yatsu nodded. ‘It’s strange that he’s not attempted to treat with us,’ he said quietly, still frowning.

Eldric snorted. ‘The… creature… realizes we know that any treaty signed with him would be worthless,’ he said.

Yatsu tapped his thumb nail on his teeth. ‘Some-thing’s wrong,’ he said pensively.

‘You’ve an unexpected capacity for understatement, Commander,’ Eldric said acidly. But the Goraidin made no response. For an instant, as his own anger bounced back on him from Yatsu’s stillness, Eldric felt the man drawing about himself all his training and experience, like an impenetrable shield, behind which he was ruthlessly converting his horror at Jaldaric’s news into a spear to drive at the heart of Dan-Tor’s intent.

‘Even given what you say about our distrust, he could talk to us,’ Yatsu said quietly. ‘Make treaties. Break them later and dredge up excuses to blame us. We know he could make very effective use of such a device to persuade more of the Lords and the people of the justice of his action. He could strengthen his position considerably. Yet he hasn’t.’ He turned to Eldric. ‘Instead, he resorts to this… barbarity… which precludes all debate, and can only draw us forth in battle.’

Eldric flicked his hand out. ‘Where he can destroy us,’ he said. But even as the words left his mouth, Yatsu was shaking his head.

‘He could have destroyed us any time,’ he said. ‘You yourself pointed that out weeks ago. That’s why we sealed our borders tight. So that we’d at least have warning if he approached. But he hasn’t made any attempt to come east.’

‘He is wounded,’ Eldric said tentatively. ‘Perhaps the journey would be too difficult.’

Yatsu shook his head again, slowly. ‘No,’ he said. ‘I don’t think so. He’s no normal creature. According to Dilrap, the arrow’s still in his side and the wound’s bleeding continuously, yet it seems to cause him neither pain nor discomfort for the most part. And we hear he’s been touring his domain, both by carriage and on horseback. He could have moved on us at any time.’

‘Perhaps… ’ Eldric began.

Yatsu motioned his Lord to silence. ‘In his place, I’d either undermine us gradually by protracted negotia-tions, blackening our name in the process, to consolidate my position with any waverers, or I’d walk in and destroy us without any preamble.’ He closed his eyes. ‘And yet he does neither.’