Bleak Seasons

46

One-Eye was a prophet. Although I did want to know. And thanks to the Nyueng Bao I heard a story.

The light across town faded. The attendant racket subsided. Part of that drifted toward the hills. The rest fell back toward Mogaba's part of town.

The crackle of small sorceries rippled across the plain. The whole expanse glistened silver. "That was a strange one. One-Eye, what say we build a watchtower on top of one of the enfilading towers? That way we could get high enough to see what Mogaba and Spinner are doing."

"You got Nyueng Bao to spy for you over there."

"Suppose I don't ask you to do any work yourself?"

"The idea sounds a lot better already. But I still think the Nyueng Bao could be your eyes, you play it right. You don't need to get as paranoid as Croaker. Just look at what they bring you so you see whose purpose it might serve. Consider what might be missing the same way."

"Sometimes I'm as lazy as you are," I told One-Eye. "Only with me it's mental. That sounds like a lot of thinking. And I'd rather see stuff with my own eyes anyway."

"Just like the Old Man," he grumbled. "You got to read them Annals all the time, how about you read some that was written by somebody besides Croaker? I was looking forward to a little relief from his righteousness."

So we were back to the black-market bread scheme.

Goblin turned up. "Pretty exciting stuff happening over there."

"Yeah? Like what?"

"I got up on the wall over there. For a while. Mogaba's guys weren't worried about getting caught letting me peek. He led this raid in person."

"Just tell us about it," One-Eye grumbled. "You all the time got to flap on about stuff that... Awk!" A huge bug landed in One-Eye's mouth. Goblin's smirk hinted that he might have been involved in the insect's errant navigation.

"That Doj character can tell you more than me. Some of his guys snuck out there behind Mogaba's gang."

"Why?"

"I think Mogaba was trying to bushwhack Spinner. But he stumbled into Lady instead."

"You're shitting me."

"When that bunch of flareballs went up? There she was. Her and about fifteen guys. They were right outside the camp gate, practically crawling over Mogaba's mob. Least that's what I heard. I didn't see it myself."

"So where's Uncle Doj?"

"Probably checking in with the Speaker."

Probably. "Yeah? Look, we've got a bunch of deserters from the First. See if some will sneak back to find out more."

"Here comes chunky boy now."

We talked right in front of Thai Dei, like he was deaf. Or like we didn't care squat what he heard.

Uncle Doj brought a couple other Nyueng Bao. They surrounded another chunky boy, this one a wide little Taglian. He seemed more prisoner than companion though no weapons were in evidence.

It amazed me that Uncle Doj could climb to the ramparts without breathing hard. Maybe he used some wild sorcery that stole Wheezer's breath.

That sounded like something out of the Gunni myth book. "What have you got, Uncle?" I stared at the squat Taglian. He was indifferent to my gaze.

"An outsider. The Speaker sent Banh and Binh to watch the black men, who wanted to attack the Shadowmaster himself. But they ran into others from the outside pursuing a similar goal. This one left his party and joined those running for the wall when the flares went up. The outsider group may have been betrayed intentionally so this one could become separated in the confusion."

I continued to study the outsider. He was a Gunni, more stockily built than anyone in these parts. Maybe he worked at that. He seemed possessed of a powerful arrogance.

I asked, "Is there anything special about him?" Uncle Doj seemed strongly interested in him, too.

"He bears the mark of Khadi."

That took a moment. Oh. Yeah. In the books from the catacombs. Khadi was an alternate or regional name for Kina. There were quite a few of those. "If you say so. I don't see it myself. Point it out."

Uncle Doj's eyes narrowed. He drew a deep breath, exasperated. "Even now you refuse to reveal yourself, Soldier of Darkness?"

"Even now I don't have any fucking idea what you're raving about. I am tired of hearing it." I was developing suspicions, though. "Instead of sputtering and fussing and offering cryptic grumbles why don't you say something I can understand? Pretend I'm what I say I am and can't call down the lightning to part your hair. Who is this guy? Who do you think I am? Come on, Uncle. Talk to me."

"He is a slave of Khadi." Uncle Doj glared at me, daring me not to understand that. He did not want to be more explicit.

That made no sense to me. But I am not a superstitious man. Did he believe his one mouth had the power to raise the she-devil alone? "Kina must be one badass bitch," I told One-Eye. "She's got Uncle drizzling down his leg. You. You got a name?"

"I am Sindhu. I am of the staff of the warrior woman you call Lady. I was sent to observe the situation here." He continued to meet my gaze. His eyes were colder than any lizard's.

"Sounds reasonable enough." If taken with a block of salt. "Lady? This is the Lady who was second in command in the Black Company?"

"That Lady. The goddess has smiled upon her."

I asked Uncle Doj, "Is he a liaison man, then? Between us and Lady?"

"He may tell you so. But he is a spy for the toog. He will not speak truth when a lie will do."

"Uncle, old buddy, you and me and the old man need to sit down and try to talk the same language for a while. What do you think?"

Uncle Doj grunted. Which could mean anything. "The toog will not speak truth when a lie will do." Sindhu was amused.

The man struck me as a complete false face. I said, "Goblin, find this guy some place to sleep." I shifted languages. "And don't let him out of your sight."

"I have chores enough already."

"Somebody's sight. All right? I don't like him at all. I don't think I'm going to like him even this much tomorrow morning. He smells like trouble."

One-Eye agreed. "Big trouble."

"Why don't we just chuck his hairy ass off the wall, then?" Goblin can be pragmatic in the extreme.

"Because I want to find out more about him. I think we've crawled right up to the edge of the mystery that has hung us up ever since we got here. Let him run free. We'll play dumb and keep track of every breath he takes." I was sure I could count on the Speaker's help with that.

My two wizards scowled and grumbled. Hard to blame them. They always end up carrying the load.