Warriormage: Book Three of the 'Riothamus' trilogy Read online

  “Control yourselves, mages,” Aran growled, his own quiescent anger rising again in sympathy.

  He turned to Drayden, “So what is this Entity?” he questioned shortly, reigning in his temper.

  Drayden turned, “What do you think my lord?” he asked abruptly, forgetting in his anger to who he spoke. “Can’t your Warriormage awareness extend even that far? To tear apart the framework of the Entity and lay Her reality bare.”

  Aran frowned at the anger apparent in the Earthmage’s words, and then with an effort of will to control his temper, mentally shrugged it aside.

  “I cannot,” he admitted.

  “Then it is unknowable,” said Bini quietly, trying to diffuse the emotionally fragile situation.

  “The Entity must be an aspect of the Goddess,” said Alissa suddenly, turning to Drayden for confirmation. “Perhaps it is an aspect that is intrinsically linked to the woodlands, and the life within it.”

  Drayden nodded, his own anger abating, “Lady Alissa is correct, although it usually only an Earthmage who can perceive and commune with this aspect of Her.”

  “Alissa has the latent Earthmage Ability,” Aran replied.

  Drayden nodded, “Of course! I remember now the Archmage telling me of this, stupidly I had forgotten.”

  He turned to Alissa, “Welcome to our ranks Lady.”

  Bini gazed worriedly at the place where the Entity had sat.

  “I am supposed to be Earthmage. Why did I not sense her?”

  Drayden looked back at the plainsman, “That is easy to explain, warrior. Each Earthmage has a particular talent within his or her own Ability. Yours, I expect is to do with living creatures, with a leaning towards horses especially, I expect? Lady Alissa’s is obviously to do with all growing things. My own talent is like yours, I have an affinity with living creatures,” he smiled to himself, “Although some of you may be aware that I do prefer birds.”

  “So the forest Entity can really only be sensed by an Earthmage attuned to plants,” puzzled Aran.

  Drayden nodded, “My lord, in the old days we used to have a titled separation of the Earthmage discipline into animalmages and forestmages. We no longer use the separate titles, although the natural talents still seem to cling to the old ways.”

  “But you confess yourself to be an animalmage,” said Darven, edging his horse forward. “Yet you sensed the Entity too.”

  “That is true,” Drayden replied. “However, I am a High Earthmage, and those years of study, spelling and research have enhanced my Ability to take in the entire range of Earthmage talents. Besides, I have been in this forest in the past and have um...encountered the Entity before.”

  Alissa glanced back to Theaua sitting quietly at the rear of the column, “And what is Mage Theaua?” she asked.

  “Like me, she is animalmage; her preference however is to all carnivores, cats in particular.”

  “Did you expect to see the Entity today?” Aran asked finally.

  Drayden shrugged, “Perhaps, I didn’t know. Normally she does not show herself to the other disciplines.” He shrugged, “We have a large number of mages in our party. It was obvious that she sensed the concentration of magepower here and so manifested herself as a she-cat.” He grinned suddenly, “Like any cat she was curious, that's all!”

  Aran nodded and then glanced about. “The morning wears away Drayden; shouldn’t we be getting on?”

  Drayden nodded, agreeing, and then called out, “If everyone can fall back into their positions in the line, we can continue our journey.”

  *

  The rest of the day did not bring the group any more surprises, except for watching the almost uncanny way the High Earthmage seemed to open ways through the seemingly impenetrable forest ahead of them. Brambles, vines and dense scrub cover, seemed, with a twist of leaves and branches, to open enough space to allow passage of the column of horses. Even the great trees, all at least several hundred years old, seemed to shrug or flinch aside at a word, or even a glance from Drayden. Looking back, Aran did not see the end of the column, but remembered Mage Theaua’s words about the forest closing behind them. Happy chance led Drayden to a small stream, and they took this goddess-given opportunity to water their horses, replenish their flasks and eat a simple midday meal of bread and fruit. Keeping an eye on the advancing day, Drayden soon urged them all again into the saddle, and then with a quick head count to make certain all were still in the party, the group rode off again.

  *

  Drayden turned to Aran, “Lord, there is a clearing up ahead. I’ve been sensing it for a while now.”

  Aran nodded glad that they would at last be stopping.

  “We need to get some fresh meat,” he reminded the mage. “It’s getting late and if we don’t do something about this soon, we’ll have to try and bring something down in the dark.”

  “As soon as we get to the clearing I’ll take Plainsman Bini and one of the Guards out with me,” said Drayden. “As an Earthmage I have taken vows not to personally hunt any animal. However, I doubt that any other in the group, excepting Mage Theaua, has taken any such vow. I expect Bini will be the most competent hunter of the entire party.”

  “Take Guard Bennek of Wolf Company with you,” said Aran. “He’s only a few years older than me, but I know him to be a sensible, level-headed soldier who will follow your directions, and not do anything rash or stupid out there, and I’ve heard he is a good bowman.”

  Drayden nodded, “As soon as we get to the clearing, I’ll take them out.”

  *

  After many hours of riding through the close, heavy confines of the deep forest, it was with lifting hearts that the others saw ahead the verdant green brightness of a clearing, lit by the long slanting rays of the late afternoon sun. With a brief movement of his hand, Drayden opened out the tight, thorny tangle of dog-roses which bordered the clearing, and led the long column into the openness and bright, clear air.

  Aran, riding the dun mare into the clearing, fully expected to feel again winter’s edge. However, it seemed that even here in the clearings the forest was extending its vital energies into moderating the extreme cold of the season, and maintaining the life within its borders. The group quickly dismounted and unpacking the gear, let the unsaddled horses wander and graze where they would in the acre-wide clearing.

  “They cannot go far,” Darven said, marvelling at how the thorny dog-rose seemed to have provided this place with a natural briary wall. “And they need to feed, there has been little grass growing under the dense forest canopy.”

  Drayden walked up with Bini and Guard Bennek at his heels. The two soldiers were both armed with light bows and quivers full of arrows, and had canvas game-bags slung casually over their shoulders. Bennek had shed his heavy mail armour, and was clad only in a dark grey-green wool tunic and leather leggings, whilst Bini was dressed in his customary plains-cured leather and bronze armour.

  “We shall not be long,” said the High Earthmage to Aran and Darven. “I have asked permission and the Entity knows our need and will send us suitable game.”

  Darven nodded, “Then we’ll get the camp set, and the fires lit in your absence. There seems to be enough wind-blown fallen branches for us to collect without having to venture into the deep forest again.”

  “Ask Mage Theaua to escort any who need to collect any wind-fall wood from under the canopy,” Drayden said.

  “When should we look out for you?” asked Aran.

  “We should be returned by dusk, lord,” Drayden replied.

  Aran and Wolf Leader Darven watched as the three men disappeared through a break in the thorny wall, and into the dark lushness of the forest beyond.

  “Come on,” said Aran, placing his hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Let’s get this camp set up.”

  *

  “There...” Drayden whispered, “Can you see her?”

  Bini and Bennek peered through the dense undergrowth, and saw a mature roe deer standing hesitantly in a late
-afternoon shaft of light. The animal lifted its head and sniffed warily, then sensing no intruder, limped heavily a few steps away to chew on a moss covered tree-trunk.

  “She’s injured!” whispered back Bini. “The back leg seems to be fractured.”

  Drayden nodded, “It is the will of the Entity that we hunt only the aged or infirm. The law of nature is implacable, and only the healthiest and strongest of the forest creatures are allowed to survive here. Our need to hunt for meat serves the Entity well, and it is by our weapons that we cull the weakest.”

  Bini glanced at the Guardsman, “You take the shot Bennek,” he offered. “Already I have brought down these half-dozen hares.”

  The dark-haired man nodded, and then taking his bow, he carefully selected a straight and true arrow, turned and sighting expertly, swiftly and silently shot an arrow deep into the chest of the deer, striking it cleanly into the heart. The deer toppled over without even a sound.

  “Good shot,” congratulated Bini. “No fuss. No mess. No wounding….”

  “And little pain,” added Drayden approvingly. “We hunt for food, not for sport, and it is always good when the animal is killed cleanly and instantly.”

  The three men stepped forward to collect the body of the fallen animal.

  *

  True to their word, the hunters returned close on dusk to a camp already erected and cook fires well lit. Bini immediately co-opted the remainder of the Guard into skinning and butchering the deer and hares. Some dried vegetables, and a small portion of the fresh meat was put aside for the night’s stew; the rest of the strips of meat were placed onto a wire framework over a slow fire, and cooked and dried for the journey ahead. The deer and hare skins were scraped clean, and cut into squares into which the cooked meat would be wrapped prior to travel.

  “We will need to hunt again tomorrow afternoon,” said Bini, staring at the rows of meat. “This might look a lot, but we’ve a good number in our party, and game will be scarce in the mountains.”

  Drayden nodded, “I will ask the Entity to send us another deer. At first those hares looked fat, but in truth they were old and skinny and had little meat on them.”

  Aran wandered over, his interest caught by the unmistakable aroma of roasting meat.

  “I see you did well,” he said, “Venison for dinner tonight?”

  Bini shook his head, “No, hare. In my experience venison keeps better and is more palatable dried than hare meat. We’ll be eating hare for the next few nights; the other meat will be kept for the mountains.”

  Aran nodded, “I think everyone is more than ready for dinner. Will you be much longer here?”

  “No my lord, we are almost done. The fire is well banked and the meat strips can be left now to continue their slow cooking.”

  “Good,” Aran glanced back at the others now resting by the cook fires. “This is quite a place you have led us to Drayden! I think everyone is thankful that they are not sleeping in the snow!” He grinned, “If word gets out, the forest will be inundated with people looking to build homes in a place that has no winter.”

  Drayden shook his head at that, “They will certainly regret their decision once the wolves have tracked them, and the grey snakes are active again. No, the forest has its own defenses against unwelcome intrusion. You forget that our presence here is tolerated only.”

  Aran frowned, “That I do not forget. Many years ago when I was just a child, my sister was lost to the grey snakes. Indeed Trevan and I happened upon one on the road south from Sentinal.”

  Drayden pursed his lips at that piece of information, “Are you certain it was a grey snake?”

  Aran nodded, “I have never before seen one, but Mage Trevan seemed certain of its species.” He smiled in sudden memory, “Indeed my mount was so startled by it that I was almost unhorsed.”

  Drayden frowned again, “This is most unusual, I have never heard of a grey snake being seen beyond the confines of the forest. I must speak to Mage Trevan immediately…”

  Bobbing his head distractedly at Aran, he hurried off to the small enclave of mages.

  “I wonder what all that was about?” said Bini, whilst cleaning his sooty hands on the grass.

  Aran pulled a face, “To tell you the truth Bini, I’d rather not know. I have troubles and worry enough without becoming involved in every little upset the mages seem to dream up.”

  The plainsman nodded, “I am told I have this Earthmage Ability, but yet I am reluctant to become a mage. I understand only the weaponslore, the plainslore and the horselore. Beyond these three I have no desires. Yet there is something that eludes me still…”

  Aran sat down on the grass beside the leather-clad warrior, “What is it Bini?” he asked.

  The plainsman shrugged an eloquent shrug, “It’s hard to explain my lord, but I feel both watched and led ever since coming into this place of many trees.”

  “The Entity?” asked Aran.

  Bini shook his head, “No…something else, something even more basic and elemental than the forest aspect of the Goddess. Something calls to me, and there is a part of me that wishes only to follow the call.”

  “Then restrain it Bini,” Aran advised. “Else the wolves will be making a meal of you.”

  Bini grinned at that, “I would sting their hide with more arrows than you could count before they tasted my flesh! But do not worry my lord, this yearning and calling is only a formless thing, and I have endured far worse in my life on the plains.”

  Aran clambered to his feet, “Let me know if it gets too much to endure, Bini, I am certain that Drayden will be able to help out.”

  Bini nodded, “I will remember your words, my lord.”

  *

  Later that evening, and after dinner, Aran and Alissa lay side by side in a sheltered hollow, staring up into the star-filled, endless vault of the night sky. Around them, everyone else had rolled themselves into their blankets and prepared themselves for sleep. The cook fires had been extinguished, so aside from the stars, there was no relief to the utter darkness of the night.

  “This is a fair place,” Alissa mused, “Fair and yet cruel like nature at it’s most elemental.”

  Aran turned on his side and frowning stared at Alissa, “You too?”

  Alissa stared at the bright hard winter stars and finally nodded, “Who else senses this thing?”

  “Bini,” he answered. “He speaks of something basic and fundamental that is calling him to follow. Do you too hear the call?”

  Alissa shook her head, “No, there is no call for me, just a reaching out and an empathy with all this growing life. Yet there is something elemental at work here.”

  “Something bad,” Aran asked frowning.

  Alissa shook her head again, “No, not bad, just something very, very old. Listen, can you not hear that it is already at work amongst the group!”

  Aran strained his senses out and immediately heard the snores coming from the mages. Then beyond that the heavy drowsiness of the Guard, and then, on the very extent of his awareness, he heard the faint yet unmistakable laboured breathing of couples in the depths of passion.”

  “Who?” he asked.

  “Drayden and Theaua,” she whispered, “And Mage Hela and a Guardsman…” She strained her own awareness out, “The one who went hunting today, Bennek, I believe.”

  Aran was more than surprised, “Perhaps I am blind, but I never knew, nor even guessed that there were any attachments formed during this campaign.”

  “I think they surprised even themselves,” said Alissa dryly. “I’ve long suspected that Theaua had a fondness for our friend Drayden, but this pairing off I believe is woven by the deep powers of the woodland.”

  “Will such attachments last?” asked Aran, as embarrassedly he tried to pull his awareness back to just both Alissa and himself.

  “Who can tell,” she replied. “I don’t think Drayden will be too unhappy with Theaua’s interest, and as for Hela and Bennek? Well, there have been stranger love
partnerships before, although this night may be only lust driven by the vital forces of the forest. Come morning we shall see how things eventuate.”

  Aran frowned, “I think Bini is involved too. He is sensing something, wants to be drawn to it, but his training and self discipline is overcoming…”

  Then Aran’s voice trailed off mid-sentence as he immediately became aware that next to him was a beautiful and desirable woman whose feminine scents were even now tantalising his already heightened senses.

  “Come woman,” he growled pulling her to him. “Everyone else is asleep or otherwise distracted, it is a good enough time and I want you now!”

  *

  Their lovemaking, compared to the other languid nights back at camp, was quick and explosive leaving them both panting. As soon as they got their breath back, Aran felt the urgency rise within him again and he immediately turned to caress Alissa. Their mating was again quick and explosive, as if the latent energies of the forest were fuelling their desire.

  “This is more than I can stand,” Aran gasped out after the fourth consecutive time. “I don’t mind lovemaking, but I prefer to wait between bouts.”

  Alissa nodded exhaustedly, however she knew full well that they could do little but obey the urgent desires of the forest.

  “There are others caught too,” she whispered as Aran’s hand yet again wandered across her body. “The Earthmages are still deep in their lust, and even Hela is at it again…and with a different Guard too! He seems to be one from the Bears this time. I do believe she intends to be with all six tonight.”

  “It will be an ‘interesting’ morning,” predicted Aran.

  Alissa turned to her lover with an urgent groan, and welcomed yet again his insistent embrace.

  *

  The disembodied Entity watched in deep interest as the mating couples sank time and time again into passionate embrace. This Ritual of Making was the very essence of the energy of the forest, and there was nothing it could do to prevent or stop the time-old movements taking place. Soon enough the mages in the group would discover how to ward themselves, and their companions against the intrusive powers, but right now all that mattered was that the Ritual of Making was successfully completed. The Entity’s awareness flitted yet again over the group, pausing only to regard the blanket-knotted, dream-haunted figure of the plainsman. This man was warded well, it thought amusedly, whilst at the same time sending out a tickle of awareness into the golden-haired warrior’s dreams. He too had the Earth-Awareness, but had guarded himself well against succumbing to the forest’s deep emotions and desires. The Entity smiled to itself. It was a pity that the golden-haired woman had vowed herself only to the Warrior-Awareness-lord. If there had not been that vow, then the mating of those two plainschildren would have been energetic indeed. No, that outcome could not be so there were deeper plans yet in store for the plainsman….