The Jotun's Pact

By R.J. Redmond

The Jotun's Pact ~
"This war is a sideshow. The outcome will be decided by a single weapon . . . A weapon that we don't have. You're the only one I can trust to find it."

As war with the Church State envelopes BjornsGaard and the surrounding kingdoms, one woman has the power to change the tide. Freyja must find a weapon born of magic and blood to save her love and help end the evil that reigns over the land.

In a hostile uncharted wilderness, Freyja must face the mysteries of her heritage, navigate the strange societies of the desert tribes, and risk a pact with an immortal jotun king . . . a monstrous being of ancient origins.

Erec must have faith in her, and trust that her strength will overcome . . . If she fails, all is lost.


Heirs of BjornsGaard ~
A thousand years ago, on the Day of Cataclysm, the world changed. Mountains rose from plains, continents fell into oceans, colossal tempests obliterated civilizations, and jotun, creatures of legend and superstition, rose up. The New Ice Age began, blanketing the world in snow and an army of draugr, dead warriors, walked the earth destroying every remnant of the old age.

From the ashes, the Church and the Clan BjornsGaard united humanity behind their banners, rallying knights and heroes to face this new world. Under their leadership, mankind overthrew the draugr and retook control of its destiny.

In the centuries since, the Church grew into an empire, controlling most of the continent. Though its origins were noble, the Church State grew based on greed, racism, and slavery. Only two militant orders of knights, the Hospitalars and the Tau, allied with the islands of the BjornsGaard Commonwealth stood against the Church States expanding pogroms. But during the intervening years, the Kings of BjornsGaard had grown corrupt and weak. In one night, the entire family was assassinated, opening the way for the Church to expand spreading its suppression and holocaust.

But in BjornsGaard's farthest northern island, hope is dawning. In the Hospitalar's Northern Compound five orphans, physically and intellectually gifted and trained by the Hospitalar knights to fight, to heal, and to reason, grow up together. With a bond tighter than normal siblings and forged stronger by pain and loss, these five will grow to challenge the Church State and accept their destiny as leaders in this new age.


*Disclaimer*
Heirs of BjornsGaard is a clean fantasy adventure series, meaning that there is no sexual content, nudity, or language. However, it does contain some violence and mature subject matter that may not be suitable for younger readers. Discretion is advised.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Apr 26, 2021
• ISBN: 9781098358501

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All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Print ISBN 978-1-09835-849-5 | eBook ISBN 978-1-09835-850-1

Elaine

My biggest fan and my most honest critic,

My muse, my inspiration, my love

I never could have accomplished this without you.

I love you

Contents

I. DESERT COLONIES

II. HROARRVEK

III. VHOLLUNVELT

I

DESERT COLONIES

CHAPTER ONE

Coastal Mountains east of Ecali

The hooded man stood in brown robes, his bare feet buried in ankle-deep snow as he called into the ancient mineshaft’s entrance.

Garmvander! Come forth, The ancient man’s voice rasped as the full moon reflected the mountain snow around him, brightly illuminating the scene.

Within moments a low growl emanated from the shaft, and the shadows moved within. Two eyes glinted near the ceiling of the opening as a massive creature trudged out, ducking under the entrance stones to stand before the man. The gigantic thing stood nearly nine feet tall, covered in dense black fur, with humanlike broad, muscular shoulders and heavily muscled but unnaturally long arms and legs. A monstrous canine head topped its thick neck with wolf-like features and small tipped ears. "Vath dhaken rash khrr Rhathott." It growled, looming over him.

The man’s gray lips sneered beneath the shadow of his hood, his thin, wrinkled fingers spread wide with irritation, Pollute my ears with your filthy Jotun tongue again, and you won’t care for the result, dog. He responded calmly.

The thing cocked its head to one side then closed its eyes. Lifting its head to the sky, the monster shrunk before him, its hair disappearing uncomfortably back into its skin, arms and legs pulling inward, and height diminishing until a tall, powerfully built man with thick black hair and an unshaven face stood in the jotun’s place.

I didn’t know you were able to travel this far from Dhrumvelt, Abbot. The man rumbled in a low but respectful tone. I would have thought your brethren’s limits would have stopped you.

The abbot’s wizened eyes narrowed with annoyance, It’s uncomfortable, but I manage if the need arises, he replied.

What do you want from me? The man asked, lowering his head.

Freeport, Garmvander, The Abbot replied, I want you to gather a pack of your children and take it for me.

Garmvander furrowed his brisling thick eyebrows, I thought you had enough of my children in your dungeon to destroy several cities.

Dhrumvelt’s abbot shook his head slowly, They escaped, and I’m afraid I had to dispose of them.

The Jotun sneered, Bound to happen, I suppose.

It was, the abbot agreed, but I shipped many others to Ecali in the months before. No doubt they’ve been able to make more children for you since they’ve been there. I also conveyed a few to Freeport some time back. So, you should have no trouble collecting a group as you go.

The broad man raised his chin thoughtfully.

I’m not sending your uncontrolled children blindly to sew discord for the Church this time . . . I don’t want the city destroyed . . . I want the blasphemer’s tools to be destroyed. The abbot’s narrow lips smiled. In this . . . I’m sending you with them . . . and you will serve me. Not my brethren the cardinals.

The Jotun straightened his lean back and pushed his ripped shoulder back proudly, his eyes glistening with pride. Stiger Igjen rothbok?

The abbot nodded his ancient face.

Garmvander dropped to his knees and prostrated flat against the snow-covered earth, How can I serve, m’Lord.

Bring your children . . . create an army . . . destroy the dam . . . make Freeport mine.

The jotun closed his eyes and bowed his head compliantly toward the clergyman. A gust of air slapped across his face as he heard the flap of massive leathery wings, and when he looked back up, he was alone.

Over the Western Mountains towards the

Desert Colonies

Freyja pulled her blonde cave bear cloak tighter around her shoulders and leaned close to the railing, frigid gusts blowing against her as she continued to stare towards the ground far below them. The steady throbbing and clunking of the airship’s engines continued monotonously behind her, spinning the four massive propellers driving the small messenger airship forward through the air. The last rocky, snow-covered peaks of the Western Mountains jutted into the sky to either side of her, so close she felt as if she could leap from the deck onto their summits. In front of her, the smaller foothills descended into a massive flat plain. A sheet of fog covered the entire flatland, as well the bases of the hills and mountains, making them look like islands piercing up through a frothy white ocean and reminding her of home.

A lock of chin-length auburn hair escaped from her hood for a moment, flying across her face before she tucked it back behind her ear. She’d cut her hair four days ago, the last day she’d spent in BjornsGaard City, she felt lighter, confident, and empowered by the change, but it still felt strange. She distinctly remembered the sinking feeling of doubt she’d experienced momentarily looking at the enormous pile of long hair lying on the floor.

She’d glanced at Erec in a moment of panic.

Wow. He’d said simply.

Wow, what? She’d shot back.

His eyes had narrowed at her for a moment, Wow . . . you look amazing. He’d replied with a smile, gently reaching out and tucking a loose lock behind her ear for her.

Freyja smiled to herself at the memory. Smart man, she thought, "He can learn."

The airship lurched upward and to the left steeply as another updraft buffeted them from the mountains below. Freyja held tight to the railing of the deck as the movement jerked her body from side to side before the craft dropped steeply and settled again.

General? She heard Kataryn call from inside the cabin of the airship. She turned towards the lithe woman. Kataryn wore a leather traveling tunic over a wool sweater and pants, her long blond hair was pulled back in a series of braids. She held the door of the cabin open with her left hand while she guided the ship’s wheel with her right.

"Captain," Freyja emphasized the title sarcastically and smirked at the Tau knight.

Kataryn smiled and shook her head, resisting the temptation to roll her eyes. "The updrafts are likely to get worse, General, she replied cheerfully, emphasizing the title sarcastically back at her friend, Did you want to come into the cabin?"

Freyja glanced down and shook her head before looking back up to spy Astrid inside the cabin slumbering on the floor next to the firewood using a split log as a pillow and wrapped in her airship pilot’s long wool jacket. Her uncontrollable brown hair stuck out wildly against the bark of the log. The General shook her head slowly.

There most likely won’t be trees on the plain, General. Kataryn continued in a low tone, We should probably land in the hills after the fog’s cleared and re-stock the wood before flying into the Colonies.

Freyja nodded, and Kataryn returned to the helm, closing the cabin door behind her as Freyja looked back out at the mountain peaks. There was a small part of her that wanted to hate Kataryn, she mused. Besides the fact that she was short, trim, beautiful, and blonde, the woman was brilliant. She naturally picked up anything she set her mind to both academically and physically. In the two weeks after Erec’s coronation, Astrid and Kataryn had worked together in the airship, assisting the Tau navy as they annihilated Varsec the Brigand’s new fleet. When they’d returned, Kataryn was every bit as talented a pilot as Astrid, and she’d worked out a new set of calculations and techniques to use if a basilica were needed for aerial combat. Making it worse, she was so happy and charming all the time. She was precisely the kind of woman it was easy to be jealous of. That said, over the last month, Kataryn had become one of Freyja’s closest friends, and now they were embarking on a mission that neither one of them had ever expected.

Two of the engines slowed and cranked to a halt as Kataryn slowed their progress. Freyja glanced out across the broad flat ocean of fog, which reflected the whitish-blue moonlight as it covered the Inland Desert and the Desert Colonies. She rested her left hand on her sword’s hilt instinctively as nervousness pushed down on her empty stomach. The three of them had been sent to find a weapon – a weapon necessary to defeat the Church State’s advance, Without it, Erec had told her, We’re done.

Another updraft jerked the ship hard to the right, and Freyja closed her eyes, remembering the conversation clearly.

He’d worn his royal colors, the BjornsGaard coat of arms emblazoned on a maroon tunic, when he’d gone to the crypt. Only Derek had accompanied him, and he’d immediately convened his war council upon his return. Derek, Nik, and she were all present along with Hjalmar, Valter Tau the Tau Grand Master, Britta Tau the Tau War Leader, and a few others. They sat in a circle on new wooden chairs in the still dusty royal palace. A musty smell perfumed the long empty castle chamber.

Erec’s face was stony, his eyes filled with concern and angst as he addressed them, demanding war preparations and ordering Nik and Britta to immediately sail to Ecali with as many Tau knights as could be spared. He’d worked his way around the room, giving each person present clear and direct orders with the obvious exception of Freya, who he seemed to avoid purposefully, refusing even to make eye contact with her. Once he’d finished his edicts, he’d dismissed all except Freyja and Derek.

They sat in silence for a moment before the doors closed, and Freyja spoke. She’d been irritated and annoyed with his evident lack of faith in her, So you’re calling up all the Tau and Hospitalar reserves and sending them off to fight but keeping me here? She’d accused.

Erec glanced up sadly to meet her gaze. Derek grinned.

So . . . she continued, you finally gather the confidence to start kissing me, and now it’s all I’m good for . . . I’m not worthy of fighting anymore? Is that it?

Erec shook his head, No. He replied sadly.

Really? She shot back, narrowing her eyes, Because to me it looks like you just gave everyone else important jobs, gave me and the other ‘icks’ high ranking positions but evidently all my rank is intended for is to pacify me! Freyja had felt blood rushing to her cheeks, I’m not going to be pacified, Erec! She continued, knowing that her face was turning bright red, You can’t make me stand by while . . .

Freyja! Derek interrupted loudly as Erec continued to stare.

She’d glared at Derek, her cheeks tingling.

Maybe you should let him talk first, Derek remarked in his slightly patronizing manner. The huge man only used that tone when he knew he had the upper hand. Freyja narrowed her eyes threateningly at him and then turned to Erec.

Erec took a deep breath in and shook his head, My love, he’d stated morosely, I wish I could keep you safe.

He set his chin before he continued, General, he stated formally, Your assignment is the most dangerous of any that I’ve made today. He paused for a moment, I need you to take a small team – specifically, Astrid and Kataryn . . . I need you to take an airship into the Desert Colonies.

She’d looked at him quizzically.

Somewhere in the colonies is a weapon. Without it . . . We’re done.

Freyja’s stomach sank, What do you mean ‘we’re done’?

Erec waved his hand at the door where the rest of the group had exited moments before, This war is a sideshow. He shook his head and rubbed his temples, The outcome will be decided by a single weapon . . . a weapon that we don’t have. You’re the only one I can trust to find it and procure it.

Freyja stood up involuntarily. What kind of weapon?

You know everything I do, he replied with a melancholy laugh.

That’s nothing.

Erec nodded, Yes.

Freyja swallowed hard, a pit forming in her stomach her cheeks now flushed with embarrassment at her outburst rather than rage. Kataryn and Astrid are fighting the raiders.

Erec nodded, Yes, and we need them there for now . . . but it won’t be long before they return, he replied, If I may venture a suggestion . . .

Freyja nodded.

I need you to leave as soon as they come back. In the meantime, you may want to utilize the library.

Freyja smirked, shook her head, and moved across the room toward Erec, Don’t you think I had enough of that place years ago . . . I assume you aren’t talking about novels. She reached for his hand, and he pulled her gently onto the throne’s wide seat next to him, sliding his arm around her shoulders as she sat.

No, he smiled back at her, I’m positive you’ve had more than enough of ‘that place’, he mimicked her voice, and I’m not talking about novels.

She rested her head on his shoulder, Sorry. She’d whispered affectionately.

He kissed the top of her head before leaning his head against hers, I understand. He paused before continuing, Nik is in Ecali. That’s where they’ll attack first. Tyg is in Freeport. That’s where they’ll attack next. Derek and I must stay here and put the government right. But all that is unimportant compared to the weapon . . . It’s all that matters He’d kissed her head again. That’s why it has to be you.

Freyja moved her head and looked him straight in the face, I will see it done.

They’d kissed, and Derek had left them there in each other’s arms.

Freya looked out at the moonlit clouds covering the massive plains in front of them, and her nervousness returned. She spent the better part of the month after that conversation in the library digging through the shelves with the assistance of Tora, the chief librarian. Searching desperately for all the information they could find on the Desert Colonies. There wasn’t much to find. Several hundred years before, after the Great Jotun Wars, the colonies had cut off nearly all contact with the rest of the world. Most accounts seemed to confirm that the Colonies had some form of matriarchal government, they refused any trade or diplomatic relationships, and they were hated by the Church State, but that was about all the information the entirety of the Al-Tig library had collected on them. They didn’t like outsiders, and they didn’t share information, they didn’t make friends.

Every day that month Erec joined her for lunch and listened to her frustration. He’d smile at her tangents, kiss her, and then return to his duties, and she’d return to the vaults – hoping for more information. They spent every evening together that month walking the streets of the city, hiking the island mountainsides, meeting the people in the nearby villages, always accompanied by a single guard hand-picked by Derek. They’d spent every early morning together training, sparring, and worshipping with each other in the Hospitalar compound. It was a magical time for both of them and the happiest she could remember until Varsec was defeated and Kataryn and Astrid returned. She and Erec had spent their last night in BjornsGaard City by one another’s sides at the turret on top of the wall above the palace kissing, cuddling, talking, and enjoying one another’s company. They had stayed awake all night together, savoring every moment they had left.

A cold gust of wind slapped against Freyja’s face. She pulled her bear fur hood tighter over her head as the first orange and pink luminescence from the dawn began to transform the sky over the distant mountains. She rubbed her tired eyes and remembered his last words to her before she left. As dawn was breaking the day they left. Astrid and Kataryn had already boarded as Erec touched her cheek and kissed her passionately one last time. They’d pulled away from each other and stared for a moment into each other’s blue eyes, and he’d spoken.

I’m sorry it had to be you, Freyja. But I know you’ll see it done.

She’d smiled modestly for a moment before he continued, his eyes turning grave.

The dead showed me what will happen if the weapon isn’t found . . . He paused and glanced at the ground before making eye contact with her again, We all die.

The Western Mountains

Nik Tau bit his lower lip and held back tears as his hairy mount galloped between the green and brown pine trees up a steep snow-covered embankment towards the tall rock outcropping that shot skywards above them. He gave a quick glance around to make sure that no one else had seen his grimace as the trail leveled off. Britta dismounted next to him as his five captains pounded up from behind and also dismounted. Nik sat still for a moment in the saddle, appraising the rugged rock face before him. The entire group’s thighs and rear ends ached and burned from weeks in the saddle, but Nik’s back seared with shooting pains radiating down his arms and legs. He’d never recovered from the time Surteng’s horse fell on him at the battle for BjornsGaard City. He’d never admitted the injury to anyone and continued attempting to hide the symptoms from his comrades as they fulfilled Erec’s orders.

After sailing down the coast, Nik’s group had found Ecali vastly different than they remembered. The legendary hospitality and openness of Ecali’s villages and people were gone. Every town they passed had a deep moat dug around it filled with sharpened stakes pointing upward and outward. Hastily built tall fences surrounded the towns just inside the line of the moat, and the people they met ran from them, refusing to talk and seeking shelter inside their villages, closing the gates tight behind them. This land of open people who had never built fortifications before and shared their abundance with each other and total strangers alike had changed radically into a hostile terror-stricken group of isolated hamlets. People who were known for living without weapons now carried knives, spears, and makeshift swords built from wooden clubs with sharpened flint blades. These people hid from the Tau knights and refused to make contact as the troops traveled through and camped on the coastal mountains’ slopes.

More surprises greeted the group in the mountains. Following the map from Astrid’s airship, they traveled into the mountains and discovered a wide, stone-paved highway winding through the passes. The thoroughfare, lined with rocks mined from the nearby hillsides, was broad enough to march a massive army through the Western and Coastal Mountain ranges into Ecali. Scattered about the sides of the highway with near constancy were Church State slave graveyards. Simple, smooth, unmarked stones showed where the bodies of too many workers lay - worked to death by the outrageous labor required to build this marvel in just over a single year.

The group of Tau knights had traveled over the pass following the highway through the melting snowpack and tall coniferous forests until they’d reached the hills on the descending east side where the thick fir trees changed into more spread out pines. There Nik, Britta, and the captains had left the majority of their legion near the highway and taken the leadership group up into the last of the peaks looking for a high vantage point to oversee the vast brown grasslands of the lower inner desert.

Nik maneuvered his mount to a location where no one else could see his face when he dismounted. Gathering his nerve, he heaved himself out of the saddle. Agonizing pain tore across his back, legs, and shoulders as he slid to the ground and landed. He contorted his face to regain control before he turned back toward the group and slogged through the snow towards the others. Captain Janna watched him with concern as she pulled her curly blond hair back into a ponytail, involuntarily accentuating her piercing lavender eyes. You alright, General? she asked quietly as he approached.

Nik forced a smile and tried to mask his limp, Just a long time in the saddle, Captain, he replied, running his left hand back through his thick brown hair before donning a knit cap. Janna pursed her lips doubtfully before turning her tall frame towards Agneta, her best friend, and fellow captain. The two were nearly inseparable but almost entirely different: Janna was similarly built to Freyja - tall, lean, and shapely, with a pleasant happy demeanor whereas her friend was short, broad, and curvy, with a hostile manner. Both were only a few years older than Nik and had been the youngest Tau knights promoted to the rank of captain before Nik.

Agneta glanced disapprovingly up at Nik before the pair stepped to the side and began tying their mounts to nearby pines. Janna motioned that she would take care of Nik’s horse, and Nik limped toward Britta and the rock face. Britta turned her brown face toward him, cutting off her conversation with Marc, a red goateed older captain, who bowed and stepped quietly to the side. The willowy woman glanced appraisingly down at Nik as he bowed his head to her. The vantage point we saw from below is on the top of this rock, General. She stated, her hard voice seeming uneasy with the idea of explaining her actions to anyone, let alone explaining herself to an extremely young, untried, upstart like Nik.

Nik nodded, glancing up at the exposed rock cliff smattered with small pines and snow, toward a lightening speck of blue sky barely visible far above over its peak. Britta waited silently for him to respond. She was testing him again, and he knew it. We can free climb this fairly easily but should tie together due to the snow. Nik stated confidently, We should minimize the risk of how many of us could be spotted if there are scouts in the area, so I suggest that Janna, Marc, myself, and you m’Lord, climb while Agneta, Frey, and Petter stay with the horses.

Britta nodded her head, thoughtfully, her piercing gray eyes staring into the dark brown of his, Why choose those? She asked simply.

Janna has a great head for tactical strategy and tends to think creatively, I want your counsel and sharp eyes, and along with his experience, Marc is the strongest and most experienced climber. Nik turned quickly to the broad, goateed man, Marc, would you please take the lead getting us organized and up the rock face?

Marc glanced over at Britta, who nodded slightly and then went to work, telling the group members their roles and procuring rope from his saddlebags. Britta glanced back at Nik for a moment but said nothing more.

Within a few moments, the group was scaling the rock face, Marc guiding them and Nik taking up the rear. Nik’s lower back seared with pain as he pulled himself up the cliff with his hands and feet. More than once, Nik winced and forced himself to stay silent as agonizing shots of pain radiated down his legs and arms. He strained to keep up with the others as they quickly scaled the escarpment. After a seeming eternity, he reached the top of the pinnacle where Janna helped him get his final foothold, making sure to assist him under his arms rather than taking his hand and heaving. She pretended not to notice as he wiped tears from his left eye before they joined the others.

The wind had blown most of the snow from the top of the huge grayish-brown rock leaving exposed stone, a few scattered short pines and stiff grasses which had managed to take root here and there among the ridges and clefts at the top of the pinnacle. From their vantage, the group could see an astonishing distance over the pine-covered foothills below them to the desert beyond.

Before them, the sun rose slowly over far distant mountains illuminating the scene. Immediately in front of them, the mountains descended into rolling foothills where the pines became sparser until they finally disappeared and brown grasses and sagebrush took over. Drifts of remaining snow and rugged, exposed rock outcroppings patched the hills and canyons accented the mounds until they settled into a long flat plain covered in the long brown grasses and sage of the southern Inner Desert. The snow had melted from the immense flatland, and protruding clearly across the expanse in a nearly straight line, was a solid stone highway that disappeared into the distant Central Mountains.

The four Tau knights stood, stunned for a silent moment before Britta reached her lean hand into her side pouch and produced a brass telescope, which she extended to an absurd length before gazing through it into the distance.

Nik casually slid his arm out from over Janna’s shoulders and pulled his cloak tighter around him as she stepped away. Then he noticed Britta’s thin lips grimace. There they are. She stated simply. The rest of the group stepped forward, squinting their eyes as they toiled to focus on the far distant highway. Britta pulled the scope from her eye for a moment and then checked again before handing the scope to Nik. Follow the highway route to the center of the plain, she instructed simply.

Nik grabbed the eyepiece with his right and attempted to hold the long end of the telescope with his left arm. As he held it outward, searing pain shot down his left arm and across his back, he willed himself to keep lifting the instrument, but his left arm shook convulsively, losing all strength as he attempted to raise the lens.

I’ll steady it for you, General, Janna pronounced, gently stepping past him to lift of the weight of the scope with one hand while softly sliding his left hand back closer to his body, Guide it from back here m’Lord. As she took the weight and moved his hand, the pain subsided. Nik closed his opposite eye and guided the view along the highway until the outline of the stone avenue was nothing but a tiny like the marking of a river on a map. That’s where he saw them. Staining the highway’s white line in the grassland, a dark mass appeared, a seemingly endless line covering the width and length of the roadway the rest of the way into the mountains. The line’s head was marked by a large group of blurry forms - so large they almost had distinguishable shape even at this distance. Even though Nik couldn’t clearly make out the shapes, he realized the stain was an army – a massive army marching through the desert toward Ecali.

Nik pulled the telescope away and handed it to Janna, his brown eyes wide as he strained to see the line in the distance. What are the things in front of them, War Leader? He asked Britta as he stared.

Mammoths. She replied as a factual observation, It’s a cavalry of mammoth.

They stood in silence for a moment as Marc and Janna both looked through the scope before Britta spoke again, Captain Marc, tie off lines and escort Captain Janna and the others back to the company. We’ll join you shortly. She ordered curtly. The other two bowed quickly to the War Master and rushed to the far edge of the pinnacle, where they quickly tied off climbing ropes before rappelling down. Nik stood silent, staring out at the rough brown of the grass and sage off towards an enemy he couldn’t see. He could feel the Tau War Master’s judgmental eyes burning into his back. She waited for him to turn towards her in silence. When he finally did turn, she stood staring uncomfortably close to him. Even though he stood more than six feet tall, she towered several inches over him, her willowy figure buffeted by the wind and her long gray hair loose and waving about as she stared hard at him.

I take my orders from the King of BjornsGaard and our Grand Master, Nik. She stated abruptly, And I’ve learned to trust the decisions of BjornsGaard House.

Nik stared back at her silently as the wind blew his thick brown hair, grown shaggy in the last month, into his eyes.

Her gray eyes narrowed, I thought they promoted you to captain prematurely . . . You’re an intelligent and gifted fighter, but I disagreed with the Grand Master’s decision. She paused, And I feel that the King’s decision to make you his General is beyond ridiculous.

Nik’s eye twitched as the words cut him. He glanced down to the rock he stood on without answering.

That said, She continued, I trust his judgment, and therefore I trust you. She reached out gently and placed her left hand on his shoulder. Her voice lowered to a whisper, Is there any reason, any obstacle any . . . injury that should keep you from this command.

Nik glanced up at the old knight. He was surprised to see that her eyes were compassionate and understanding. He shook his head, No, m’Lord.

Her eyes immediately turned hard again, and she nodded sanguinely, glancing over his shoulder towards the desert. I’m leaving you here with five squads: a company of two-hundred and fifty . . . I’ll take my escort and return to the legion to make preparations in Ecali. She tightened her grip on his shoulder. I need every minute you can buy me . . . slow them down as much as you can.

She turned his body towards the desert and pointed a long, taut arm at the highway. They are moving faster than you can imagine, and if the people of Ecali don’t join with us we only have our legion . . . three thousand to face them . . . Do everything you can to slow their approach . . . Whatever it takes . . . I’ll meet you on the other side of the mountains. She turned abruptly to head for the ropes.

War Leader, Nik called after her, his eyes still fixed on the unseen enemy in the distance.

Yes, General.

He took a deep breath in, How many are they?

Britta Tau set her jaw, It’s hard to guess accurately yet, she sighed. But judging by length shadow on the road . . . sixty to eighty thousand . . . not including the mammoths and mounted cavalry.

Nik felt the moment freeze around him, his mouth dried out and, for an instant, he didn’t feel the pain of his back.

Thorngin Island, BjornsGaard Commonwealth

The massive man sat on a log round in the flickering orange light of his campfire. The breeze blowing off the ocean waves beside him parted his thinning brown hair as he reached out and fondly touched the gigantic battle axe leaning against his leg. In the distance to his left, across the sea, and over the distant mountainous islands, the first pink light of sunrise began to illuminate the eastern sky. I told you this was a dumb idea, he stated quietly, breathing on his hands and rubbing them together for warmth.

He glanced toward his companion, whose powerful cloaked form stood silently staring over the sea towards the dawn. The roar of the breakers crashing against the rocky beach would have muffled any reply, but the man by the fire was positive that there had been no verbal response. He dropped another log onto the fire and watched the rising embers fly chaotically inland with the smoke. In the brighter light from the flames, he glimpsed a figure cautiously approaching them through the tall firs that edged close to their grassy campground. The man’s body flexed and readied itself for battle, but he kept his eyes fixed on the fire.

The figure skulked closer as the two remained silent until it paused behind the tree closest to them for a moment. The massive man grabbed a long stick and prodded the fire but continued to ignore the closing figure. After some minutes, the man in the shadow of the tree stood out proudly and strode into the firelight. The man was tall and muscular with long brown hair, pulled back in a ponytail and a grizzled graying beard worn long but trimmed. His skin was weathered tan from years working on the water, his face proud and challenging though his woolen clothes were tattered and poorly mended.

If it isn’t Master Constable Derek, the man sneered, coming into the flashing light, his left hand resting on his sheathed sword’s hilt.

Varsec, Derek replied evenly, keeping his hands in front of him.

The brigand looked to either side of the campsite, his glance lingering on the other man for a moment before turning back to Derek. The boy-king is careless, asking you to come here with only one guard to keep you safe.

Derek smirked, Are you referring to the rabble you had surround us an hour ago. He shook his head disdainfully, I’m not concerned by the six of them, he glanced from side to side casually, Are these all you have left after the Tau knights made mincemeat of you and your borrowed Church fleet. Derek smiled broadly, keeping his voice relaxed, It certainly didn’t take them long to destroy your petty little band.

Varsec’s eyes flashed, Last time I met you, you lay in a pool of your own blood as your friends tried to drag your fat carcass to safety.

Derek maintained his indifferent smile.

That skirmish didn’t work out so well for you either. The other man spoke from the beach, turning toward the fire and approaching slowly with his unarmed hands out. As I remember, chasing us up that ravine caused the end of your first fleet. Our counter-attack broke your ranks, slaughtered your men, and took you prisoner. The man slid his hood back to his shoulders as he stepped into the firelight revealing bright orange hair and a grisly scar leading through his left eyebrow to his hairline. How many of your men fell that day Varsec? Do you want to repeat it?

The brigand stepped back, startled for a moment, but quickly regained his wits. If it isn’t the boy who killed his best friend for the throne, Varsec quipped.

Derek’s hand grabbed the hilt of his axe, his body jerking forward, incensed at the offense. Before Varsec could react, the scarred man snapped his fingers loudly and pointed toward the ground. Derek let out a long breath and sat back down, his irate eyes seething at the pirate.

We didn’t call this meeting to exchange insults, brigand. The red-haired man stated formally, and if we wanted a fight, we would have had the Tau attack your last hideout on Valarian Island already.

Varsec’s cheeks tightened as he attempted to control his response. Then what do you want . . . King Erec.

Erec strode closer, studying the taller man. We want to know why a raider attacks trading posts and burns them to the ground but takes only the tax and tribute money and makes sure the merchandise is given back to the merchants. Why he slaughters the government officials and hired guards but leaves the villagers, merchants, and islanders alone. Why the towns are left untouched while the government trading posts burn . . . and why did the government authorities always report that the towns were burnt as well, when that was a lie? The King stared straight into Varsec’s eyes, "Why would a ‘brigand’ behave that way? It sounds more like the actions of someone who considers himself a man of the people . . . or a folk hero . . . That’s what we want to know, why you behaved this way?"

Varsec’s eyes twitched slightly with confusion, It’s no business of yours, boy, he replied scornfully.

Erec considered this for a moment. As King, we beg to differ, he replied simply, using the royal ‘we.’

Varsec stared back at the young king, his resolute stance, calm demeanor, and compassionate eyes. It’s not your concern. He hissed back, "Nor do you