“Are you all right, ser?”
“I will be.” I hope.
Saryn just forced herself to wait until she was certain there were no Jeranyi left in or around Suedara. Then she rode back south and out to where Shalya was supervising the recovery of weapons and mounts.
Once there, Saryn reined up short of the squad leader. “After you’ve taken care of the wounded, make sure that your squad recovers every single shaft and blade possible, including the damaged or broken ones. We’re going to need each one.”
“And the spoils, ser?”
“The standard,” replied Saryn. That meant half of all coins and jewelry to the Marshal-or Saryn, in this case-for supplies and the like and the other half split among the squad, with a double share to the squad leader. She’d varied the spoils occasionally, to compensate for the lack of coins among the guards, but from now on, she needed the standard…if not more. All weapons were for Westwind, to be used as Saryn deemed necessary.
With a nod to Shalya, Saryn eased the gelding toward Caeris and what remained of the Lornian squad, also recovering weapons and spoils. Dyala and Kayli flanked her as she rode.
From what Saryn had been able to sense during the fight, after she had used her white-darkness-expanded blade, less than a handful of riders had managed to ride over the ridge and take the back trail. Their tracks indicated-since Saryn could sense little-that they were not headed westward, though, but almost due south, toward Cardara and the lands of Lord Orsynn. Perhaps thirty or so had escaped her dark blade and fled toward Suedara and attacked third squad. None of those had escaped, although Saryn wasn’t exactly happy about the casualties.
“Commander.” Behind Caeris’s voice was something, not quite fear and not quite respect.
“Most of the Jeranyi are dead. Once you’ve completed matters here, please join up with us for the return to Nuelda.”
“We’re returning?”
“Less than a double handful of Jeranyi escaped. For the moment, I doubt that they will be any threat to Lord Jharyk’s folk.”
“Less than a…out of fivescore?”
“The rest are dead.”
“Yes, ser.”
Saryn wasn’t sure, not with her uncertain eyesight, but she thought the squad leader looked a trace pale. She smiled politely and turned the gelding back in the direction of Suedara.
More than two glasses later, Saryn’s combined force was back in formation and ready to ride. Given the size of the Jeranyi force and their reputation, the casualty numbers for her detachment wouldn’t have seemed that bad to the Lornians-nine dead, five of them Lornians, four of the junior recruit guards, and six wounded, none seriously enough not to ride, of which three were Lornians. The regency force had also ended up with nearly forty captured mounts and, according to the count of the squad leaders, some eighty-three dead Jeranyi. Unhappily, somewhere between ten and fifteen of the dead Jeranyi had merely been wounded in fighting second squad-until the locals got to them near the end of the skirmish.
Saryn’s head was still splitting. Closing her eyes didn’t seem to provide much relief from the shimmering arrows of light that flashed across her field of vision and stabbed through her eyes and into her skull. She also didn’t want to think about what she had done…or how.
After receiving final reports from the three squad leaders, Saryn ordered the Lornians to lead. Then she eased her mount into position beside Caeris, who did not look in her direction for the first kay, not until they were well north of Suedara and riding northeast toward Nuelda.
“Do you think they have more raiders around here, ser?”
“Not all that close, but I’d be surprised if this is the last that we hear of them. But it won’t be for a while, and we can’t stay here and wait.”
The squad leader nodded slowly.
“They probably won’t attack Lord Jharyk’s lands soon. They’ve already plundered most of the towns here.” As she finished, Saryn realized that many of the coppers and silvers taken as plunder had probably come from those hamlets and towns, but she wasn’t about to try to figure out how to return them, not when there were no coins coming from either the regency or Westwind to support her force. But…she still couldn’t help but feel a trace guilty.
Another half kay passed before the Lornian squad leader spoke again. “Ser…how did you know that they’d attack Suedara and take this road?”
“They’ve tried to plunder every other hamlet and town close to the end of the West Pass. This is the one with the most goods and women. They were trying to drive everyone here, then hit here and return to Jerans.”
“But why this road?”
“What other road would they take?” replied Saryn with a smile.
“They could have come in from the north almost as easy, or come across the bridge into Suedara from the east. You just seemed to know.”
“Sometimes, you just have to trust your judgment and act.” Even as she replied, Saryn couldn’t help but wonder. How had she known? It had felt obvious to her, but it had been more than that. She’d known. Saryn swallowed. Does it come from sensing order and chaos flows? A feel for what must be? Or was it just a lucky guess?
Saryn almost would have preferred the last…but she’d felt something beyond certainty.
LXX
Saryn did not press on the ride returning to Nuelda, and her force did not arrive until well after dark on sevenday. Even so, by the time she was riding past the nearly dark front entry to Jharyk’s redbrick villa, the lord-holder, accompanied by two servants bearing brass lanterns, had hurried out to meet her. As she reined up, she could see lanterns being hurriedly lit in the villa, and presumably in the rear courtyards as well.
Jharyk stood there fully dressed, and as dapper as before. “Commander, you sent no word, and we did not expect you, especially not so soon.”
“Good evening, Lord Jharyk.” Saryn had no trouble discerning the irritation in the lord-holder’s voice and posture. She forced the hoarseness from her voice and ignored the lightknives attacking her eyes and the throbbing in her skull.
“Might I ask what occurred?” His eyes flicked to the guards, then back to Saryn.
“You were right to be concerned.” Saryn smiled politely. “There was a good company or so of Jeranyi raiders who were attacking your lands and hamlets. They had sacked all of them except Suedara, mostly before we arrived, before we could bring them to bay.”
“And?”
“Ten of them escaped. The other eighty-three or so are dead.”
“I presume you have recovered some mounts and goods for us…to compensate us for the devastation we have suffered.”
“They’re Jeranyi horses, and they will be used to mount more Westwind guards to serve the regency.” Saryn kept her tone polite. “They were paid for in blood. Mostly Jeranyi blood, but also Lornian regency forces’ blood and Westwind guards’ blood.”
“My people have suffered greatly. Should they have no recompense?” asked Jharyk smoothly.
“If they need recompense, Lord Jharyk, perhaps they should turn to you. You did not have to raise and train armsmen to drive off the raiders, and that surely should leave some coins. We’ve removed the Jeranyi for now, and, after we get a good night’s rest and food and fodder, we’ll be heading back to Lornth in the morning.”
“You’re leaving that soon? What if they return?”
“They may return, but I doubt it will be soon. Not with nine-tenths of their force destroyed.”
“I see. Did you not capture any?”
“There were perhaps twenty wounded, but”-Saryn shrugged-“the townspeople of Suedara took out their vengeance on them while we were running down the stragglers.” That wasn’t quite true. It had happened as much because Saryn had been barely functioning, and the guards had been more concerned about weapons and stray mounts, as well as possible armed stragglers. “What ever simple fare your kitchens could prepare would be appreciated,” she added.