yet. Just wondering, that’s all.’
‘He’s proven his value so far.’
‘I know.’
Gregory nodded to the far shore.
‘It’ll take them an hour to get back to the main column. Two hours, more like three, to reach the bridge and then another couple hours to here. We leave a dozen archers to hold here, just in case they are crazy enough to try and rush across. I think we can get this lot moving in an hour or so.’
‘Better dry yourself out first. The temperature will drop today now that the storm is past.’
Gregory, features turning blue, nodded and returned to the fire.
One of the riders had already turned about and disappeared back into the woods. The others drew back to the edge of the wood line and dismounted, and within minutes a fire had sprung to life.
He saw Asayaga standing by the fire, shivering violently, hands extended to the heat. Tinuva went to the second fire where the venison was charring in the flames, poked out a piece with a stick and went back to the Tsurani leader and offered him the meat, which he accepted without comment.
‘Why did you do it?’
‘I thought it was someone else, one of my men.’
Tinuva chuckled softly.
‘Hard to mistake Hartraft for one of yours.’
‘It was a mistake, I tell you.’
‘A mistake to save him or a mistake in knowing who you were saving?’
Asayaga took a bite of half-cooked venison. ‘He hates me.’
‘Do you hate him?’
‘It is my duty to kill him. And yes, he has been a thorn in our side for years. Killing him would bring honour to my clan.’
‘Would you have let him drown?’
Asayaga hesitated.
‘Would you?’
‘No.’
‘Why not?’
‘When I kill him, I want it to be a fight of honour. Letting him drown would not bring honour to either of us. And it would be a waste. He’s right. We need every sword if we are to survive.’
‘Know this, Asayaga: Dennis is a brilliant warrior, among the finest of your race I think I have ever known. He, too, has honour, though perhaps not as your people define it. I think he would have done the same for you. In fact it will rankle with him now because he owes you a blood debt.’ Tinuva chuckled softly. ‘You’ve presented him with a paradox. In order to kill you he first must settle the blood debt of life.’
‘There is nothing funny about it.’
Gregory approached them. ‘Funny about what?’ he asked.
‘Dennis owes Asayaga his life, but wants to kill him.’
Gregory nodded, then observed, ‘Elven-kind see the world slightly differently than we do.’
‘Yes, there is much in this that is grim,’ observed the elf. ‘Yet, nevertheless I see humour in it. Your human gods love to present you with such riddles and challenges, or so it has seemed to me for most of my life. Long have I known humans like Gregory and I have even visited a human city, yet there are times when I wonder at the complexities of your thinking. You often seem to prefer difficult choices when simple alternatives are available; it is a constant source of amazement to my kind.’ He glanced over to where Dennis stood. ‘It will be interesting to see how the two of you solve this dilemma.’
Asayaga grunted, obviously not seeing anything of humour in the situation.
Dennis came up to join them, munching on a piece of meat. He tossed a stick with another piece of meat on it to Tinuva. He offered none to Asayaga.
‘We rest here for an hour to dry out, warm up and eat. Tinuva, I’ll detail off some men, half a dozen, to stay behind here with you. I expect the Tsurani to leave a half dozen as well. That should dissuade them from trying to make a rush.’
‘I will not take orders from you, Hartraft.’
‘Fine then. Call it another of my bloody suggestions, Tsurani.’
‘And then what?’
Dennis smiled and pointed to the next range of mountains to the north. ‘We head up there, lose the bastards, then settle our differences.’
Without waiting for a reply he walked away.
‘A hateful man,’ Asayaga snapped and Tinuva could sense that the Tsurani had expected some sort of ritual to be played out, a formal exchange of acknowledgment of blood debt. He could tell, however, that Hartraft was uncomfortable with the entire incident and just wanted it dropped.
‘War does that,’ Tinuva replied finally.
‘Does what?’
‘It makes all of us hateful.’ As he said the words he gazed intently at the far side of the river.
After a moment, Asayaga left to see to his men.
When they were alone, Gregory said, ‘What is it?’
Tinuva knew what the question meant. Gregory understood his people well enough to know that sooner or later Tinuva would tell him what it was that had bothered him since the ambush. Quietly, Tinuva said, ‘Of those the Tsurani and I ambushed, one was Kavala.’
Gregory swore. ‘That means …’
Softly, Tinuva said, ‘Bovai is near.’
Gregory said, ‘Another of the gods’ riddles and challenges?’ He shook his head. For a human, he could mask his expression almost as well as an elf, yet to Tinuva, his distress was obvious.
‘Hardly,’ said Tinuva. ‘A cruel fate, perhaps.’
‘What will you do?’
Tinuva said, ‘I will serve, and do what I can to help Dennis, you, and the Tsurani, survive. But if the chance comes to end this … blood debt, then I will take it.’
Gregory nodded. He knew what few humans knew of the truth behind the relationship between the eledhel and the moredhel, and specifically between Tinuva and Bovai, and he would not speak of it to anyone without Tinuva’s permission.
Finally, he said, ‘Best not to let Dennis know about this until it is impossible to hide it. If he knew Bovai was there, he might just linger long enough to force a confrontation.’
Tinuva’s mouth turned slightly upward, an open expression of humour. ‘Dennis owes Bovai a blood debt, but he has more sense than that.’
Chuckling, Gregory said, ‘I hope you’re right.’
