Avenger

EPILOGUE

11 Tarsakh, the Year of Deep Water Drifting (1480 DR)

A little less than a month later, the great hall of Griffonwatch was as full as Geran had ever seen it. It seemed that half of Hulburg had gathered in the harmach’s hall. Bright sunshine flooded in through the windows high overhead, and the smoke-darkened rafters had been dusted, scrubbed, and freshly lacquered. Old banners that had been removed by Marstel’s servants were back in their places, repaired and cleaned for the occasion; after all, it had been more than thirty years since the coronation of a new harmach. Geran leaned against a doorway in the back of the hall, watching as his young cousin Natali sat in the harmach’s seat, receiving the oaths of allegiance and well-wishing of her new subjects. She wore a dress of rich yellow, and her dark hair was coiffed beneath a slim gold tiara for the occasion. Her eyes looked big, dark, and perhaps a little frightened, but she’d been coached well for the ceremony, and Kara-wearing a fine dress and an elegant coiffure instead of her customary riding clothes or arms and armor-stood right beside her.

“You’ll do fine, Natali,” Geran murmured, even though he was much too far away for her to hear him. The musicians at the far end of the hall blew a small fanfare of their trumpets. Roars of approval, applause, and shouts of “the Lady Harmach!” and “Harmach Natali!” echoed throughout the great hall. Geran joined in, settling for raising his fist in the air and shouting “Huzzah!” since he’d learned the hard way that it was a bad idea to applaud with his new hand. He hadn’t found any way to remove it short of simply amputating it from his wrist, so he simply kept it hidden beneath a thin glove of fine leather that matched his formal coat.

“Well, that was close,” Hamil remarked to Geran. He, Mirya, and Sarth watched from beside Geran. “They almost made you king, there. Good thing you picked the wrong chair, but poor Natali!”

Geran answered his friend with a smile and took Mirya’s hand, admiring the dress she wore-an elegant gown of a soft rose hue with beautiful embroidery and delicate patterns of tiny white pearls. Where she’d found something like that in Hulburg, he couldn’t fathom, but she looked lovelier than he’d ever imagined in it. She read the unspoken compliment in his gaze and smiled softly for him.

“The realm’s in good keeping,” she said. “And this time I think it will stay that way. You’ve done right by your uncle.”

“I hope so.” Geran turned to Sarth, gripping the tiefling by the shoulder. The tiefling still leaned on a cane, but Geran guessed that he wouldn’t need it for much longer. “You’re looking well, Sarth. I’m glad that you’re here.”

“It is a great day for your family. I wouldn’t be anywhere else,” Sarth replied.

“You’re staying, then?” Mirya asked him.

“I believe I am.” Sarth nodded at the people filling the hall. “Hulburg is one of the few places I’ve been where my deeds seem to outweigh my appearance. In fact, Kara has asked me to assume the title of master mage; I find that I like my prospects.”

“I, on the other hand, have decided that I can’t bear the prospect of another summer in a land where it never gets warm enough to kick off your shoes, or lie in the sun, or think about jumping into a nice, cool lake,” Hamil said. He gave a dramatic shiver. “I think I’ll be returning to Tantras soon. The Red Sails have been without my attention for far too long. If I stay away much longer, I might find that I am no longer a man of means, and that would be truly tragic.”

“You’ll visit soon, I hope,” said Mirya. “Selsha thinks the sun rises and sets on you, you know.”

“Well, I certainly can’t trust Geran to look after Red Sail business here by himself. I’ll be back at least once before the end of the summer to see to a few things. Maybe more than once, if Geran gets himself in some trouble that I have to fix.”

Kara appeared at Geran’s elbow, having briefly escaped from her well-wishers. She leaned forward to embrace Sarth, then Hamil, and then Mirya as well. “Thank you all for coming,” she said. “And my thanks to each of you for what you’ve done for us. Without your help, Maroth Marstel would still reign in this castle. We couldn’t have set things right without you.”

Mirya curtsied, and Sarth bowed his head. “It was our pleasure,” Hamil replied with a bow of his own. “And the right thing to do, Lady Regent.”

“Enough of that nonsense, Hamil,” Kara replied. “And you too, Sarth, Mirya. Kara is my name, and I’ll be sore if you don’t use it. Now, I hope you don’t mind, but I’d like to have a word with Geran. I promise to return him soon.”

Geran looked at Mirya and his comrades, and shrugged. “Please, excuse us.”

“Let’s find some fresh air for a moment,” Kara said. She led him to the stairs and threaded her arm through his. Together they climbed up to the balcony overlooking the hall and the upper courtyard beyond, the traditional dividing line between Griffonwatch’s public chambers and the personal residence of the Hulmasters. The sun was bright and the day promised to be warm for Tarsakh, but the shadows still held a chill; spring in Hulburg was never all that warm.

“Did I do the right thing by Natali?” Geran asked Kara as they walked. “I feel that I’ve stolen the rest of her childhood by what I’ve done today.”

“At times it will be hard for her, but you shouldn’t worry for Natali. I can shelter her for some time yet, and she’ll have all of us to keep an eye on her. No one will expect her to be anything other than a lively young girl for a few years, except maybe once in a while when she has to dress up for some banquet or ceremony.”

He paused to look down at her. “Thank you, Kara. That eases my conscience.”

“Don’t thank me yet, Geran. I’m not through with you. You owe me something for chaining me to the throne for the next ten years.”

“Owe you?”

“Yes, you owe me. You mean to stay near Hulburg, I presume?”

Geran thought of Mirya and Selsha. No, he wasn’t going anywhere for a while-and he didn’t want to, either. Hulburg was where he meant to be, and he’d fight to stay here. “I think you know that I’m finally home to stay.”

She smiled at him. “In that case, you won’t mind taking a seat on the Harmach’s Council. I need someone to do for me what I did for Uncle Grigor, a family member I can trust with all my confidences, someone who can see to things I can’t see to as the harmach’s regent.”

“You want me to captain the Shieldsworn?” he said with a frown.

“Not unless you want to. If we need the Shieldsworn in campaign I’ll lead them myself, and if we don’t, then it’s a task that wouldn’t suit you very well. No, you seem better at improvising, breaking rules, taking action when others wouldn’t-things I’ve never done well.” Kara’s expression grew serious. “We have powerful enemies that bear watching: Mulmaster, the Crimson Chains, the tribes of Thar, and soon enough the Warlock Knights. I want you to watch them for me. Think of yourself as the royal spymaster if you like, but if I know you, I imagine you’ll rely on your own eyes and ears more than others. Do the things I can’t do from the harmach’s seat, and tell me what I need to know. Are you willing?”

Geran thought it over for a moment. In fact, he’d been a little worried about what he’d do with himself. He’d assumed he’d busy himself with looking after the Red Sail Coster’s affairs in the Moonsea … but as Hamil had told him more than once, he wasn’t much of a merchant. What Kara was asking him to do intrigued him, and wheels were already turning as he considered the first steps he might take to establish sources of information. There was no reason the harmach of Hulburg couldn’t be the best-informed ruler in the Moonsea, and that would be a potent tool to lay in Natali’s hands when it came time for her to take her throne.

“I’m willing,” he told Kara. “We won’t be surprised by our enemies again, that much I promise you.”

“Good!” she said. They returned to the stairs leading from the upper courtyard to the balcony overlooking the great hall. The sounds of music and laughter filled the room. “In that case, I think the Harmach’s Council is filled. Deren Ilkur’s agreed to resume his place as keeper of duties, and old Theron’s back as high magistrate. Sarth has agreed to assume the title of master mage, and Mirya should make a fine keeper of keys.”

“Mirya?” Geran asked, surprised.

“It was long past time for Wulreth Keltor to retire, especially since he didn’t seem to object to staying on in Marstel’s service when the rest of Uncle Grigor’s council was dismissed. Mirya’s got a sharp mind for accounts and she’s made a go of Erstenwold’s for years in the face of competition from the foreign costers. I think the Tower treasury could use someone exactly like her to put Hulburg’s finances in order.” Kara nudged him in the ribs. “And I must say that if you didn’t know that Mirya and I discussed the question this morning, you’re off to a very poor start as my secret spymaster.”

“That’s hardly a fair test!”

“So you say. In any event, I’m afraid I must return to our guests. I don’t doubt that there are a dozen people that I must speak to, or risk offending someone I shouldn’t have.” Kara disentangled her arm from Geran’s, and then reached up to kiss him on the cheek. With a small breath for courage, Kara descended the stair and rejoined the crowd below, heading to Natali’s rescue; the young harmach and her mother Erna were surrounded by a dozen noble guests from neighboring realms.

Geran paused on the balcony, enjoying the sight of so many familiar faces in the room below-commonborn Hulburgans like Brun and Halla Osting, young Kardin Ilkur, Burkel Tresterfin and his family, and the militia captain Nils Wester, all proud heroes of the Restoration; the secretary Anton Quillon, Kolton, the old chamberlain Dostin Hillnor, and a dozen more retainers of the family Hulmaster; Kendurkkel Ironthane, nodding at the music as he smoked his pipe; Sarth dressed in resplendent robes, laughing softly with Nimessa Sokol as they shared some jest or another; Hamil, who held half-a-dozen children including Kirr and Selsha spellbound with some ridiculous tale as he winked at a lovely halfling woman Geran recognized as a lady-in-waiting to the Marmarathens of Thentia; and there, not far from Hamil and his captivated audience, Mirya Estenwold, her long black hair-unbraided, Geran observed-a river of midnight that fell past her shoulders. As if she sensed his eyes on her, she looked up over her shoulder, and their eyes met. She smiled up at him, a warm and open smile that he’d come to love more than the rising of the sun or the stars in the sky.

He straightened up from the rail and descended into the crowd, never taking his eyes from her, as she slipped through the crowd to meet him. When they met, he couldn’t help himself; he caught her by her shoulders and pulled her close to kiss her soundly. She leaned into him for a long moment before she pulled away, blushing. “Now you’d better stop that, Geran Hulmaster,” she said. “Acting in such a way in front of all these good people! What will they think of you?”

“That I’m a very fortunate man, I hope,” he answered. In fact they had a surprising moment of privacy in the middle of the revel, as most of the people around them were straining for a look at Natali and Kara, and weren’t paying much attention to the two of them. “You’ve been keeping a secret from me.”

“I suppose Kara’s told you, then.” Mirya glanced at the regent, and sighed. “I’m not at all sure I’m the right person for the job. And I’ll have to hire someone to look after Erstenwold’s for me, since I can’t very well manage the store and look after the Tower’s purse at the same time.”

“You don’t know how strong you are, Mirya. You’ll do fine.”

She gave him a grateful look. “What are you going to do now that you’re not the Lord Hulmaster any longer?”

“Oh, I’ll be helping Kara as I can. But mostly I hope to be looking after you and Selsha.”

“You think I need looking after?” she asked, and a hint of fire flickered in her eyes.

“I know you don’t, Mirya. But I know that I need you.” He took her hands in his and gazed into her face, hoping that she could see what was in his heart, everything that was in his heart. “I asked you a question a few tendays ago, and you never answered me. Will you have me for your husband, Mirya?”

Mirya stood still as a statue, staring at him. “You still want to marry me? Even after what Rhovann made me do?”

“Yes, I do,” he said. “With all my heart I do.”

Mirya tried to speak, and stopped herself. Then, almost as if she didn’t expect to hear it herself, she whispered, “Yes.”

Geran found himself grinning like a fool. “Yes? You said yes?”

She laughed, and nodded her head. “I said yes!” she cried, and flung her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply.

They stood, lost in each other, until Geran became aware of a tremendous roar and shouts of approval all around them. He looked up and realized that the great crowd had finally noticed the two of them. Commoners, Shieldsworn, merchants, noble guests, all beamed and applauded for Mirya and him. Kara laughed aloud in delight, and clapped along with the rest.

A short distance away, Hamil grinned at him. About time you got around to that, the halfling told him. What in the world were you waiting for, anyway? “Lord Geran! Lady Mirya!” he shouted, and the crowd took up the cry. “Lord Geran! Lady Mirya!”

Beside Hamil, Selsha jumped up and down in delight. Mirya smiled at her daughter and held out her arm; like a dark-haired bolt of lightning Selsha bounded over and threw herself into her mother’s side, hugging Mirya and Geran both. “Mama! Geran! Is it true?” she said. “Are you getting married? When? When?”

Geran glanced at Mirya, and they shared a smile. He reached down to hug Selsha back. “Soon,” he said. “Soon, I promise you.”

Then, to the wild cheers of the hundreds in the hall, he took Mirya in his arms and kissed her again.