Lachlei stared at him for a moment. What are you? she wondered, but instead, she asked, “What about our army?”
“Cahal, Telek, and Laddel are leading them away from Caer Lochvaren. They’ll be joining what’s left of the Lochvaur army.”
“And the civilians?” Lachlei felt her mouth go dry. What about Haellsil and Wynne?
“Your son is all right,” Rhyn said. “Wynne had enough foresight to escape before Caer Lochvaren was razed.”
“How many civilians escaped?”
Rhyn frowned. “Maybe ten thousand.”
“Ten thousand?” Lachlei closed her eyes. “Out of forty thousand civilians? What of the army?”
“Maybe twenty thousand if we include the stragglers, but the Elesil have joined us.”
“By Teiwaz, Rhyn,” she whispered. “The Lochvaur have nearly been exterminated.” “Many have sought refuge in the Lochvaren Mountains,” he said.
“And you left the army to find me?” Lachlei asked, her temper beginning to rise. “You shouldn’t have come.”
“What was I to do? Leave you to Areyn?”
“If need be. I can take care of myself.”
“Not against Areyn Sehduk,” Rhyn replied, his voice rising.
“And you believe that you could do something against the god of death?”
“Yes, I do.”
“You would have to be Athel’cen.”
Rhyn said nothing but met her gaze. When he finally spoke, his tone was measured carefully. “I make no apology, Lachlei. Now, if you are well enough to ride, I suggest we do so. We have a long journey ahead of us.”
67
Lachlei rode silently beside Rhyn. She now regretted their argument. She had shown Rhyn no gratefulness for saving her life, something she now wanted to do, and yet when she turned to speak to him, he silenced her with a glance.
She suspected that they were in the forests northeast of Caer Lochvaren, not far from the King’s Highway, but just east of the mountains. The forest was broken with large meadows and the land was rolling, not flat. Lachlei heard the screams of the demons overhead, but Rhyn appeared unconcerned.
Instead, he seemed to look into another world; his eyes slightly out of focus. They continued to ride southward through the forest for hours until dusk.
Rhyn reined his horse and dismounted.
“Why are we stopping?” Lachlei asked.
“We should rest,” Rhyn replied. “We have another full day and night’s travel before we reach the army.” He looked into the sky, scanning it for something.
“What about the demons?” Lachlei asked, dismounting from her horse. She stretched slowly and looked up where he was gazing, but saw nothing. “What are you looking for?”
He glanced down at her and smiled. “Patterns in the Wyrd,” he said. “With the Athel’cen in this world, the Wyrd is changing at an alarming rate.”
“The Athel’cen are here?” Lachlei asked.
“Of course,” he said, distractedly as he stared at something she could not see. “You wouldn’t expect Areyn’s presence here to go unanswered, do you?”
Lachlei gazed at Rhyn for a while, but he did not elaborate. “What about the demons?” she ventured.
He glanced at her again. “They’re following us, but they know I’m here so they don’t dare make their move.” He paused. “Did you see Areyn?”
“No,” Lachlei said. “Just his Eltar and the woman named Imdyr.”
Rhyn looked puzzled and let his eyes glaze over again. “Imdyr,” he murmured and then shook his head as his eyes came back into focus. “Odd, I can’t see her.”
“Rhyn,” Lachlei began. “I’m sorry I…”
The North Marches Chi’lan shook his head and grinned. “Lachlei, I understand.” He gripped her shoulder affectionately. “Stay close to me. I’m the only reason the demons aren’t coming for you.”
“Why are they after me? Because I’m Rhyn’athel’s champion?” Lachlei asked.
“It has something to do with that, yes,” he said. He turned and began gathering dead wood for a fire.
“Won’t the fire attract the demons?” Lachlei asked.
“They already know we’re here,” he said. “It doesn’t matter. They won’t attack tonight.”
Lachlei followed him silently. Rhyn seemed more enigmatic than ever now. She wanted to ask about the Athel’cen and how he knew that they were in Elren. She wanted to ask him how he could see the Wyrd when no mortal could. She had a million questions and no answers. She wanted to trust him, but he seemed unwilling to say much more.
She helped gather the firewood and made a small fire in a clearing where the wind had blown the snow from the ground. As the shadows deepened, they sat and ate in silence. Lachlei gazed at Rhyn, feeling very much alone in her thoughts. The North Marches Chi’lan was aloof, apparently concentrating on something far away. Lachlei bit into the hardtack and grimaced. She stood up and searched her horse’s pack for more edible food, but found little.
“Just hardtack, Rhyn?” she asked.
Rhyn shrugged. “I was in a hurry.”
Lachlei laughed and sat beside him. “I would imagine so. Why did you come after me?”
Rhyn smiled grimly. “Isn’t it obvious?” he asked.
Lachlei felt a twist in her stomach. It was not the answer she was prepared to hear. Instead, she spread a bedroll beside the fire, hoping that the layers would at least keep her dry, and lay on them. She looked into the skies and saw that wisps of clouds were beginning to form. A shadow passed swiftly overhead and she shivered as she felt the presence of a demon.
“You’re safe,” Rhyn assured her, looking up. “They won’t come near.”
“There’s no way I can sleep,” she muttered. “Not with those things flying above us.”
“You should sleep. We have a long ride ahead.”
Lachlei closed her eyes, but her senses were on alert. She could see the demons with her Sight, passing overhead and circling like hungry wolves. Each scream caused her to jolt fully awake. At last, she turned over and looked at him. “I can’t sleep.”
“Nor, I,” he admitted. “The demons require too much of my attention.”
“Can you tell me a story?” she asked, propping her head with her hands.
He grinned. “I think I can. What do you want to hear?”
“About Rhyn’athel,” she said.
“Rhyn’athel?”
“You seem to know more about Eleion history than anyone I’ve ever known. Certainly, you know more about the warrior god than I do. And I am his champion.”
Rhyn smiled. “I suppose I do. What would you like me to tell you? How he defeated Areyn the first time?”
She shook her head. “No. Tell me a story I haven’t heard.”
“How about the story of where he falls in love with a mortal woman?”
Lachlei smiled as she closed her eyes. “He did?”
“Oh yes,” Rhyn said. “Rhyn’athel’s brother, Ni’yah, played a trick on the warrior god and convinced him to come to Elren to see his champion. Ni’yah led Rhyn’athel to her and he fell hopelessly in love…”
Lachlei opened her silver eyes. “Was she pretty?”
“More lovely than the goddesses of Athelren,” Rhyn replied. “But that wouldn’t have mattered; for he saw her heart and knew she was the embodiment of the Chi’lan.”
“How romantic,” Lachlei murmured as she closed her eyes again. “Did she love him?”
“She didn’t know he was a god, for he had taken an Eleion form. She turned from him because she loved another she could not have…”
“Then, she was foolish.”