The Eighth Warden Book 6
Copyright© 2024 by Ivy Veritas
Chapter 12
Conley’s black priest’s robe got him through the gate without problem, though the preparations for war in Tarwen Village were even more obvious than in Highfell. The guards gave him directions to the barracks, but it took another quarter of an hour before he found someone he recognized amongst all the activity.
“Enzo!” he called out. The former mercenary was waiting outside a temporary smithy, watching the work being done.
Enzo came over, a wide grin on his face. “Hey, priest man, didn’t know you were coming.”
“Neither did I,” Conley said. “Is Ariadne here in Larso?”
“Sure. At this time of day, she’s probably at the command post with Corec,” Enzo said, indicating a tiny building near the main barracks.
Conley had hoped to speak to Ariadne in private first, but his message was too important to wait.
“Thanks,” he told Enzo. “I’ll come look for you later.”
“Supper call’s in two hours,” Enzo said. “I’ll be here.” Mercenaries and soldiers tended to be friendly with priests of Pallisur, not wanting to gain the disfavor of the God of War.
Conley nodded and gave a quick wave, then walked over to the command post, knocking before letting himself in.
“Sarette won’t be back from Highfell until after dark,” Corec was saying to Ariadne. “If we keep to this schedule, you may need to take over some of her duties when she’s out scouting or flying messages.”
The two of them turned toward the door as it opened.
“Conley!” Corec said. “What are you doing here? I thought you were looking for your priest friend?”
“Yes, Osbert and I found Delvin, and he brought us to some priests who could help. They slipped into Northtower and freed the knights from the demonic compulsion.”
“Already? That’s great to hear. How are they ... feeling, after everything that’s happened to them?”
His meaning was obvious. “They know it was King Rusol who did it,” Conley said. “They’re not too happy about it, but they’re still discussing what to do next. That’s why I’m here.”
Corec breathed a deep sigh of relief. “If Northtower’s no longer under Rusol’s control, that eliminates one potential line of attack. Thank you. This is the best news we’ve had in weeks.”
“Wait,” Conley said. “It’s more complicated than that. Blue Vale has an entire army dedicated to Pallisur. That’s where the priests came from. The army took control of Northtower after the priests freed the knights. The knights backed them, for the most part.”
Corec cocked his head to the side. “Blue Vale? I guess I shouldn’t be surprised their soldiers follow Pallisur—they allied with Larso during the North Border War—but why would they come south?”
“I’m not sure,” Conley said. “They were already on their way before we found them. And Ariadne, two of your people are in command. Lady Ephrenia, and a General Calum. Ephrenia has armor just like yours.”
“Ephrenia!” Ariadne exclaimed. “What about Thedan? Is he there too?”
“Ephrenia and Calum are the only two I saw. I never made it as far as Blue Vale, so I don’t know if there are any others there.”
“You know who they are?” Corec asked Ariadne.
“I knew Ephrenia from ... back home, but I’ve never heard of anyone called Calum before. It’s not a Chosar name. It could be Thedan, though. He’s someone else I knew.”
“Ephrenia is calling herself the Herald of Pallisur,” Conley said. “The northern priests all support her. They say Pallisur sent a vision telling them that she speaks in his name, even though she’s a mage.”
Ariadne froze, not looking in Corec’s direction.
Corec eyed her, but didn’t press for any more information. “You said the knights sent you here?” he asked Conley instead.
“General Calum, actually. We heard the rumors that the Black Crows had declared against the king. Once our scouts confirmed it, Calum sent me to speak to you. And he specifically said to talk to you, not the duke or your father. He didn’t say why.”
Corec exchanged glances with Ariadne. “Calum knows about wardens, then. Which makes sense if he’s Chosar.” Turning back to Conley, he said, “What’s the message he asked you to bring?”
“He wants to coordinate a plan for dealing with King Rusol. I was supposed to contact Hightower after you, but when I passed through Highfell, I heard that Baron Hightower and the knights there have already sided with the king.”
Corec nodded. “They did, but this is still good news. I was worried we were going to have to do this alone. Do you have numbers? Troop dispositions?”
“Four hundred knights, two thousand northern soldiers, plus some of the border guards who didn’t desert their posts when they saw us coming. Everyone’s still at Northtower for now. Baron Wymond and Baron Harding have repositioned their troops, so we’re waiting to see if they intend to attack. They have to know by now that the town was taken over by foreigners.”
“My father’s in communication with Wymond and Harding. They’re listening, but they haven’t committed to joining us yet. And they didn’t tell us anything about Northtower being conquered. I’m not sure why they’d keep that from us. We’ll have to send a pigeon message to make sure they don’t do anything rash.” Corec paused for a moment, staring into the distance. “What’s this General Calum willing to offer?”
“We didn’t talk about it in those terms,” Conley said. “He wants me to find out what your plans are.”
Corec frowned. “I’m going to need more from him than that. But I guess I’m willing to make the first move. Give me some time to speak with my father and Sir Jesson, and then I’ll write up our decisions. We don’t have any pigeons that home in Northtower. Are you going back, or should we send a messenger?”
“Whatever you’d prefer,” Conley said.
“How would you feel about serving as my envoy to Wymond and Harding? They’re loyal to the Church, so I need a priest I can trust.”
Conley wasn’t sure how to respond. Corec trusted him? It was the first time he’d ever suggested that.
With Conley heading off to find lodging, Ariadne was left frowning at the door, considering the possibilities. What was Ephrenia up to? Was she simply supporting the so-called Order of Pallisur against an unstable ruler, or was something more going on?
“What was it that you didn’t want to say in front of Conley?” Corec asked.
“Ephrenia is a Mage Knight,” Ariadne said. “One of the two who escaped from the stasis pods before you found me.”
Corec wrinkled his brow. “So you really do know her personally then? Not just who she is?”
“I didn’t know her well. She was a warden’s bondmate when I first started my training. She and Thedan didn’t actually join the order until close to the end of the war.”
The Mage Knights had suffered losses throughout the war, and by the time Ephrenia and Thedan had joined, Ariadne was the only remaining pupil, and she hadn’t been old enough yet to join.
“Why would a Chosar from your time be leading an army loyal to Pallisur?”
“She and Pallisur were always close friends.”
Corec blinked, then blinked again as he considered that statement. “What?”
Ariadne took a deep breath. This was the moment she’d been dreading. She trusted Corec, but she’d trusted the old wardens too, and they’d destroyed her people.
“Do you remember when I told you about the First Warden, Pallis? After the ritual, he became Pallisur. Thedan is his bondmate. Ephrenia is bonded to Arodi—Arodisis, you would call her—but she spent her time fighting on the front lines with Pallis. They fought in two Demon Wars together; they’d known each other for two thousand years even before we went into stasis.”
“You’re saying the gods are the Chosar wardens?”
“I’m not sure how it happened, but yes. Irisis is an elf, but the others are Chosar.”
“I don’t ... I ... they’re just people, like us?”
“They have to be. Where else would godborn come from? The ritual changed them somehow, giving them magic like the totems had—Hera admitted that much. The Lady, I mean. She sent a vision to tell me some of what happened, but she didn’t go into any of the details.”
“You spoke to The Lady?”
“She spoke to me. She couldn’t hear anything I said back to her.”
Corec’s voice was quiet when he next spoke. “Do you think Pallisur is telling this Ephrenia what to do?”
“I’m sure he’s aware of what she’s doing,” Ariadne said. “I couldn’t say whether they’re in communication. Why?”
“Yesterday I wasn’t sure whether the gods actually existed, or if all the priests are just lying about the source of their powers,” Corec said. “Treya and Bobo don’t go around claiming to follow a god. I thought maybe...” He shook his head and sighed. “I don’t know. I need to think about some things.”
He left the little building without another word, walking with a weary trudge to his steps.
Ellerie put the finishing touches on her final mage light spell. The last of the twelve lanterns laid out before her began glowing, though only in one direction. The devices were solid metal on three sides, and had a shutter on the front that could be opened or closed as needed.
She turned to her commanding officers. “Distribute these to your men,” she told them. If they kept the lanterns pointed backward, her forces would have just enough light to make their way through the trees in the darkness without tripping, while hopefully not warning the enemy camp they were on their way.
She’d kept her voice low. They were half a mile from their target, but no one was certain how far sound would carry in the forest at night.
Kevik distributed four of the shielded lanterns amongst the knights, while Cason took two for his small cavalry unit. The cavalry weren’t bringing their horses for the attack, since the animals would be a hindrance in the forest, but each member of the cavalry was a former knight and well-accomplished at fighting on foot. Five more of the lanterns were divided up between the archers—nineteen civilians plus Ellerie’s own two scouts.
Barat, now wearing the mirrorsteel armor of a Mage Knight, had turned down the offer of a lantern, cupping a dim mage light of his own in his palm. It was the first time Ellerie had seen him successfully cast an arcane spell. He was far more accomplished with elder magic.
Boktar would be trusting his own eyesight to get through the darkness. Ellerie’s dark vision wasn’t as strong, and she didn’t have Shavala’s elder senses to make up the difference, but she and the elven sentinels would be toward the rear of the group. They’d have plenty of reflected light from everyone else.
That just left the grooms and cooks, most of whom wouldn’t be a problem.