The Master threw back his head and laughed shrilly. «She will be next, Blade. After her, all the others. Only can you stop us-only you. Bring your men down from where they are, give up your fight, and the prisoners will live. Otherwise-«he jerked a thumb downward.
Blade heard a confused growling and muttering from both the Hashomi and the soldiers and refugees behind him. After a moment he shut it out of his awareness. His mind never worked better or faster than when he faced a total crisis that called for a split-second decision. This was one of those crises.
With dramatic suddenness Blade straightened up, and made an obscene gesture at the Master of the Hashomi. «Coward!» he shouted. He repeated the gesture. «Lover of small boys! Eater of dung!»
The Master stiffened, and the Hashomi around him gripped their weapons and stared at Blade. Blade waited just long enough to be sure that the Hashomi's archers weren't going to let fly, and repeated his gesture a third time.
«Coward, I say,» he went on, more softly. «You are only able to fight old men, women, and children. You cannot fight men, such as myself or those who follow me. Your followers at least have tried-and failed. They have died-but it is you who have sent them to their deaths. The death you cannot face yourself. Master of the Hashomi? I call you unworthy to be the master of dogs who feed on carrion!»
The Master of the Hashomi was now as erect as his own staff, and pale as milk except for his eyes, which blazed red. He seemed to be struggling for words. Blade did not give him a chance to speak, but threw out his challenge.
«Master of the Hashomi, do you dare to meet a man? Then tomorrow at this time I will face you, here on the bridge. I will come to you, naked as I was born, with only my hands. You shall bear your staff, equipped as you see fit. We shall meet thus, on the bridge, and fight to the death. If the death is mine, then no man may call you coward again. What say you, Master of the Hashomi? Have you the courage to earn your name and rank?»
There was more muttering among the Hashomi. Blade could see them looking at each other, then at the master. He noticed that some of the sharpest looks were from those who wore bandages on their heads or arms. The Master's control over his people stood on thin ice after so many defeats and so many losses. It might not survive a refusal of Blade's challenge-or so the Master would think.
Blade would have prayed, if he'd thought that would affect the Master's decision.
Then the Master swallowed, and raised one hand in salute. «Blade, it shall be as you say. Here on the bridge, at this time tomorrow, you naked, me as I am now, with my staff. Let all present hear us!»
«We hear!» shouted the Hashomi, and Blade thought he detected a note of relief in some of the shouts. He raised his arms in a signal to his own people, and they repeated the shout.
«We hear!»
Then Blade lowered his arms and whispered sharply,
«Now let's get out of here!»
He could not remember taking a single breath until they were all safely behind the barricade in the tunnel.
Chapter 25
Giraz glowered at Blade the moment the two were alone.
«Blade, have you gone mad?»
«Everybody seems very ready to call me a madman,» said Blade sharply. «First Esseta, now you. This makes more sense than anything else I could have done. I'll even explain it if you give me a chance.»
Giraz sighed: «You would go ahead and do it anyway, wouldn't you?»
Blade nodded. «The Master couldn't refuse a challenge like the one I made. His people have been taking too much punishment to be willing any more to follow him blindly. They hope he'll kill me easily, and then you and the others at the hospital will surrender.»
«I take it we're not supposed to?»
«Great Junah, no!» exploded Blade. «Why do you think I made him so angry before challenging him? I made him angry, so he'd forget to insist that my people promise to surrender if I was killed. He did forget, and now I don't think he'll risk changing the conditions of the fight. By all means-if I die tomorrow, you're in charge. Go on fighting as long as you can.»
«That may not be very long, Blade. There is the food shortage, and the refugees won't be happy about seeing their friends and families tortured to death.»
Blade shrugged. «You'll just have to do the best you can. The Baran's army will come, sooner or later. This challenge gains us a good twenty-four hours without lifting a finger. Also, the Hashomi may not be so interested in going to work on the prisoners after the Master is dead.»
«You're sure of winning, then?» said Giraz.
Blade shook his head. «I'm sure the Master of the Hashomi will die tomorrow, whether I live or not. That's all I can promise.»
Blade found it easy to sleep that night, in spite of the knowledge that he might be going to sleep for the last time in his life. He'd meant what he said to Giraz. Unless the Master were both fantastically skilled and fantastically lucky, he would not be able to kill Blade without getting killed himself. The determination of the Hashomi had been shaken by the collapse of the Master's plans, and might very well collapse with his death. Blade's men would go on fighting whether he was there or not. Once again, Richard Blade found himself expendable in a good cause.
The morning dawned clear, with the promise of staying that way. With no rain, the planks of the bridge would be dry once the night's dew was gone. That would reduce the risk of slipping. Blade was glad of that he didn't want to have to worry about accidents. This fight would be enough of a challenge as it was.
The Master had seen Blade fight, but Blade hadn't seen him. The Master would know many of Blade's strengths and weaknesses, while Blade could only guess at most of the Master's. Blade did know that he was stronger than the Master, and suspected that he was at least as fast. He also knew some tactics for dealing with quarterstaves that the Master wouldn't be expecting. They depended on Blade's longer reach and outright brute strength, so he hadn't bothered teaching them to the smaller and lighter Hashomi.
Blade was at his end of the bridge before the Master arrived. With Blade were Giraz and a guard of archers and swordsmen. He'd also strengthened the guards at the barricade in the tunnel, and placed all his fighting men on alert. Blade wanted to make sure the Hashomi wouldn't be tempted to try anything if the battle took any unexpected turns.
When the Master appeared, he was carrying his great staff, with the silver ball that contained the various drug-laden needles. He wore only trousers and sandals. The hair on his chest was as gray as the hair of his beard, but nothing else about him showed his age. He was all whipcord muscle, sinew, and bone. It would be possible for Blade to pull the Master limb from limb if he got a good hold on the man, but it wouldn't be easy for him to get that hold in the first place.
With the Master were three Treases and twelve regular Hashomi. He'd also brought Mirna with him, naked, chained, and showing fresh bruises and welts. Blade was glad to see her, and whispered to Giraz, «If I go down alone with the Master, see that one of our archers puts an arrow into her. She deserves a clean death.»
«And if you do not go down, Blade?»
«Then Mirna may outlive us all.» Their eyes met in clear understanding of Blade's meaning.
Now Blade stepped forward, arms crossed on his bare chest, eyes fixed on the Master. The Master raised his staff and held it crossways, looking back at Blade. The escorts of each duelist moved forward to close off the ends of the bridge.