The rain returned that afternoon. Lilavati pulled up the hood of her newly crafted rain cloak. “I will continue to remind you of your promise to Dieter and his companions until you reward them properly,” she said, brushing one damp length of hair behind her ear.
“I made a promise to them?” Manas asked.
She fixed him with a dark look until she saw the merriment dancing in his eyes. “This is not a matter for levity, sikha,” she said. “They believe you will not remember. Or that even if you do you will not follow through.”
Manas frowned. “When have I ever done such a thing?”
“I do not know, but it must have occurred enough times that your servants no longer trust your word when you swear you will do something for them,” Lilavati said.
Manas sighed. “The past year has been hard on all of us,” he said. “I’ve grown more and more agitated as the pressure of finding a wife settled in. Perhaps I’ve done things during that time that made them think that.”
“Who forced you to seek out a bride?” Lilavati asked.
“My neighbors, my advisors, and the very customs of the land I so hope to change,” Manas said. “Katali, I’m nearly thirty. A lord who’s unmarried that long is in danger of not leaving behind any children should he be forced to fight in a war at the behest of the king.” He scowled. “Though if the call comes, Phiri Hu won’t answer.”
“Why would you not give honor to your oaths to your ruler?” Lilavati asked. “In my lands, that is an offense that would see all in the household – from the family to the servants – put to death.”
“It’s a similar situation here,” Manas said. “However, the king has been silent every time any of his border lords have asked for additional troops to help with the incursion of the Shadow Warriors of An-Karat. He doesn’t seem to care. Those few of us who have heard from him have been told that we should be able to handle ‘a few barbarians with spiked clubs and spears.'” Manas shuddered. “Katali, the Shadow Warriors are far more than simple barbarians.”
“Then your king must be convinced of the threat,” Lilavati said. “Capture some of these strange soldiers and present them to him.”
“We’ve tried. Not me personally, but other border lords,” Manas said. “No matter how well they’re guarded, no matter how thoroughly they’re searched, they somehow manage to get a blade into their cells. They’re dead by the dawn following their capture.”
Lilavati frowned. “This concerns me,” she said.
“It goes beyond concerning for those of us who’ve been dealing with it for the past few years,” Manas said.
A cold gust of wind nearly pulled Lilavati’s hood off. “This is something to discuss when we are safe and warm in the tent,” she said, shivering. “The darkness from the clouds is unnerving me, and the chill in the wind does nothing to ease that.”
“I agree,” Manas said. He frowned. “It’s almost too dark.” He twisted in his saddle. “Ludger, how long until we camp?”
“It’s just up here and to the right, Great Lord,” Ludger said. “Don’t worry. And before you ask, it’s only early afternoon. But this will be turning into a massive thunderstorm soon and I want everyone under cover as much as you do.”
“Thank you old friend,” Manas said. He turned back to face the front.
“Thunderstorms in my land are rare, but when they appear they wreak terrible damage,” Lilavati said. Her voice trembled. “They frighten me.”
“Don’t worry, katali,” Manas said. “They can pass quickly here.”
“Or be fairly severe,” Ludger said as he joined them. “This one’s got a lot of strength behind it, Great Lord.”
“Magic?” Manas asked sharply.
Ludger chuckled. “That was my first thought too, Great Lord. After all we’ve been through I think we have a right to be paranoid about that. But no, it’s nature releasing her tension.”
“That at least is some good news,” Manas said.
Lilavati muffled a gasp as the first bolt of lightning tore across the sky. The rumble of thunder that followed it was quiet and distant. “We need to pick up the pace, Great Lord,” Ludger said. “Or we’ll be caught in the downpour without shelter, and I believe it will be worse than what we’re dealing with now.”
“How far is the campsite?” Manas asked.
“Around that corner and to the right,” Ludger said. He frowned. “It doesn’t feel inhabited.”
Manas raised himself up in his stirrups. “Pick up the pace, people. I don’t fancy being drenched by this oncoming storm.”
“Great Lord, is it a cursed storm?” someone called.
“No,” Manas said. “Ludger has assured me it’s natural. Let’s hurry so we don’t get caught in the Daughter of the Twelve’s wrath.”
“Daughter of the Twelve?” Lilavati asked as she nudged her horse into a trot.
“Nature is considered one of the children of the Twelve,” Ludger said. “She is fickle at the best of times, and spring isn’t one of those. She’s far more unpredictable during this time of year.”
“Dieter told me that this was an abnormally long spring,” Lilavati said. “That it was passing far beyond the expected length.”
“It is,” Manas said. “We see this happen once in a while. It just means we’re in for some peculiar weather and the other seasons being out of sync with their normal patterns.”
“Some say this heralds great change in the Northlands,” Ludger said. “The last time it happened the current king seized control of the throne from his despotic father.”
“Yes, and he’s little better than that mad fool he deposed,” Manas said.
“That is far truer than I’m comfortable with,” Ludger said. “Why do you think my people retreated to our ancestral home?”
“I am beginning to wonder what exactly it is that I have entered into when I agreed to be your bride,” Lilavati said.
“A world of politics, intrigue, backstabbing, and love,” Manas said, glancing at her.
“The love I will accept,” Lilavati said. “The rest I will master and then turn against our enemies.”
“This is one of the reasons why I love you, my katali,” Manas said.
“There, Great Lord,” Ludger said. “That’s the campsite.” Lilavati looked where Ludger pointed. A large area sheltered by stone sat in front of them. It was large enough to shelter a group ten times as large as those they traveled with now.
“Set up quickly,” Manas said. “I have a feeling those rocks won’t protect us from everything.”
to be continued…
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