Light gleamed. Vanye braced his hands on the horse's moving shoulders, and stared at that soft glow, at the assemblage of tents gathered amid those great trunks, color showing in the firelight. He blinked through tears of exhaustion, fragmenting the image.
"Merir's camp?" he asked of the Man who led his horse.
"He has sent for you," that Man said, but no more would he say.
Music drifted to them, qhalurand beautiful. It died at their coming. Folk left the common-fire and stood as a dark line of shadows along the course that they rode into camp.
The arrhendimstopped and bade them dismount. Vanye slid down holding the mane, and needed the bracing of two arrhendimto keep his feet as they guided him, for his legs were weak and the ceaseless motion of the horses still ruled his senses, so that the very earth seemed to heave under him.
"Khemeis!"
A cry went up. A small body impacted his and embraced him. He stopped, freed a shaking hand and touched the dark head that rested against his heart. It was Sin.
"How did you come here?" he asked the boy, out of a thousand questions that he wondered, the only one that made clear sense.
The wiry arms did not let him go; small hands clenched in the sides of his shirt as the arrhendimurged him to start walking, and drew him on. "Carrhend moved," Sin said. "Riders came. It burned."
"Go away, lad," said the khemeisat the right-gently. "Go away."
"I came," Sin said; his hands did not unclench. "I went into the forest to find the qhal.They brought me here."
"Did Sezar come back? Or Lellin?"
"No. Ought they? Where is the lady?"
"Leave him," said the khemeis."Lad-do as you are told."
"Go away from me," Vanye said heavily. "Sin, I am not in good favor with your people. Go away as he tells you."
The hands relaxed, withdrew. Sin lagged behind. But then as he walked Vanye caught sight of him, staying to one side, trailing them forlornly. He walked, for they would not let him do otherwise, to Merir's tent. They brought him at once inside, but Roh was left behind: he did not realize that until he was faced about in front of Merir's chair.
The old qhalsat wrapped in a plain gray cloak, and his eyes were sad, glittering in the light of the lamps. "Let him go," Merir said; they did, gently, and Vanye sank down to one knee and bowed himself to the mat in respect.
"You are sorely hurt," Merir said.
It was not the opening he had expected of the old lord, whose grandson was lost, whose line was threatened, whose land was invaded. Vanye bowed again, shaking with exhaustion, and sat back. "I do not know where Lellin is," he said hoarsely. "I want leave to go, my lord, to find him and my lady."
Merir's brows contracted. The old lord was not alone in the tent; grim armed Men and qhalwere about him, force at need; and there were the elders, whose eyes were darkened with anger. But Merir's frown held more of pain than of wrath. "You do not know the state of things here. We know that you crossed the Narn. And after that, the harilim,the dark ones have severed us from the region. Is it not so, that you went to find Nehmin?"
"Yes, lord."
"Because your lady would have it so, against my wishes. Because she was set on this thing; and warnings would not deter her. Now Lellin is gone, and Sezar; and she is lost; and war is upon us." The anger did come, and stilled, and the gray eyes brooded in the lamplight, lifted slowly once more. "I saw all these things in her. I saw in you only what I see now. Tell me, Khemeis,all that happened. I shall hear you. Tell me everything and spare no detail. It may be that some tiny scrap of knowledge will help us understand the rest"
He did so. His voice failed him in the midst of it, and they gave him drink; he continued, in their stark silence. There was silence even after he had finished. "Please," he asked of Merir, "give me a horse and one for my cousin too. Our weapons. Nothing more. We will go and find them."
The silence continued. In the weight of it, he reached to his neck and lifted off the chain that bore the amulet, tendered it to Merir. When Merir made no move to take it, he laid it on the mat before him, for his hand could not hold it longer without shaking.
"Then let us go out as we are," Vanye said. "My lady is lost. I want only to go and find her and those with her." "Man," said Merir at last, "why did she seek Nehmin?" He was dismayed by the question, for it shot to the heart of things that Morgaine had withheld from their knowledge. "Does it not control Azeroth?" he countered. "Does it not control the place where our enemies are?" "Were," said another.
He swallowed, clenched his hands in his lap to keep them from trembling. "Whatever is amiss out there is my doing. I take responsibility for it. I told you why they came; they pursued me, and Nehmin has nothing to do with that. My lady is hurt. I do not know if she is still alive. I swear to you that she is not at fault in bringing attack on you."
"No," said Merir. "Perhaps she is not. But never yet have you told us all the truth. She asked truth of me. She asked trust. And trust have I given, to the very edge of war and the loss of our people's lives and homes. Yes, I see your enemies for what they are; and they are evil. But never yet have you told us all the truth. You and she crossed through the harilim.That is no small thing. You dared use the harilimin escaping your enemies; and you survive and that amazes me. The dark ones hold you in uncommon regard-Man that you are. And now you ask us to trust you once more. You wish to use us to set you on your way, and never once have you told us truth. We shall not harm you, do not fear that; but loose you again to work more chaos in our land no. Not with my question still unanswered."
"What will you ask, lord?" He bowed again to the mat, trembling, and sat back. "Ask me tomorrow. I think that I should answer you. But I am tired and I cannot think." "No," said another qhal,and leaned on Merir's chair to speak to the old lord. "Will a night's rest improve the truth? Lord, think of Lellin."
Merir considered a moment. "I ask," he said at last, though his old eyes seemed troubled at the unkindness. "I do ask, khemeis.In all cases your life is safe, but your freedom is
"Would a khemeisbe asked to betray his lord's confidence?"
That told upon all of them; there were doubtful looks among these honorable folk. But Merir bit his lip and looked sadly at him.
"Is there something then to betray, khemeis?"
Vanye blinked slowly, forcing the haze away, and shook his head. "We never wished you harm."
"Why Nehmin, khemeis?"
He tried to think what to answer, and could not; and shook his head yet again.
"Do we then guess that she means some harm to Nehmin? That is what we must conclude. And we must be alarmed that she has had the power to pass the harilim.And we must never let you go."
There was nothing else to say, and even silence was no safety. The friendship that they had enjoyed was gone.
"She wished to seize Nehmin," Merir said. "Why?"
"Lord, I will not answer you."
"Then it is an act which aims at us or the answer would do no harm."
He looked at the old qhalin terror, knowing that he should devise something to say, something of reason. He pointed vaguely and helplessly back toward Azeroth, from which he had come. "We oppose that. That is the truth, lord."
"I do not think we have truth at all until it involves Nehmin. She means to seize power there. No. Then what else might she intend? 'The danger is to more worlds than this one'Her words. They sweep much wider than Azeroth, khemeis.Do I dare guess she means to destroy Nehmin?"