Ashes of a Black Frost

“Very well,” Konowa said. He paused, a question forming that he wasn’t sure how to ask, or even if he should. He knew most officers and certainly the Prince wouldn’t inquire of a soldier how he was doing. Soldiers do what they’re told. For the most part Konowa accepted it as the way it had to be. He also believed, however, that a soldier fights better when he understands the situation, at least as far as he’s able to grasp it. And that meant officers needed to understand things, too, most especially the hearts and minds of the troops.

Konowa realized the soldier was staring at him so he simply said: “How are you holding up?”

The soldier pointed to his chest. “Me, sir? Better than most,” he said, waving in the direction of the battlefield. “I’m still here, got all me parts, no extra holes, and I’m looking forward to moving out.”

Konowa strained to hear a trace of sarcasm, but couldn’t detect a note. “Eager to get at the Shadow Monarch are you?”

The soldier shrugged his shoulders. “You could say that, sir. Way me and the lads see it, when we climb the elf witch’s mountain and kick Her down the other side, well, we’ll be good and done with the oath. With that taken care of, I’ve been thinking I might take me back pay, retire from this here army, and take on a new job, one with a little less danger if you take my meaning.”

Konowa did. “Clerking in a shop perhaps, or driving a milk wagon?”

The soldier’s eyes grew wide and he shook his head vigorously. “Lordy no, sir. I was thinking about joining the navy. Except for these biscuits, the sea air felt good somewhere deep inside me, you know? A man can breathe out there.”

Thoughts of the ocean for Konowa brought about the immediate opposite reaction. “I suppose everything qualifies as a job with less danger when compared to our current activities.” Konowa hunched his shoulders as a blast of wind drove more snow down his back, where it melted and trickled down his spine. The chill made thoughts of the ocean a little too real for him. “Can you swim?”

“Not as such,” the soldier said, a shy smile stealing across his face, “but I float like a champion. I figure that’s close enough.”

“Could be, but try to bunk near some cork, just in case. Carry on, Private,” Konowa said. He saluted as he took a step to walk on, then stopped and turned back. “Feylan.”

The soldier’s smile grew. “Aye, aye, Major!”

Konowa enjoyed the rest of his time moving among the troops. Wherever he went, they nodded or gave a thumbs-up. A few even grinned. Despite the horrors they’d faced and the losses they’d suffered, these men were not broken. He felt a small yet rousing speech coming on when an icy blast threw snow in his face and brought him back to reality. It reminded him that despite the black acorn connecting him to a cold magic, he still needed to stay warm. Konowa began to search for a dead warrior still clothed, but wherever he looked, the bodies were already stripped bare. He spied the Prince in conversation with Rallie and deliberately angled away from them. He had all he could handle right now with the coming march.

The determined form of Viceroy Alstonfar heading straight for him, however, begged to differ.

“Viceroy,” Konowa said, nodding his head in greeting as the man rolled to a stop. He was swaddled from head to toe in robes from at least five different Hasshugeb warriors. “Think you’ll be warm enough?”

The Viceroy beamed a smile that suggested he’d missed the sarcasm completely. “You’d think my few extra pounds would keep me warm, but all they’re really good for is lowering people’s estimation of me when we meet.”

Konowa inwardly cringed. This man before him was an accomplished diplomat with obvious intelligence between his ears who had shown real courage on the field of battle. Before Konowa could form an apology the Viceroy carried on.

“I find it works in my favor more times than not, although not as well as I’d like when it comes to the fairer sex. And please, call me Pimmer.” His smile, thankfully, did not leer at the mention of women, but the conversation was heading in a direction Konowa didn’t want to follow.

“Are you ready?” Konowa asked, wondering how the man could ride a camel wearing so many robes. “We should get moving as soon as possible. With a bit of luck, we can break through what trees remain and reach the coast at Tel Bagrussi in two days.” Konowa saw the expectant look and relented. The man had earned it. “Pimmer.”

Pimmer’s eyes misted and Konowa worried for a moment that he might actually tear up, but another cold gust of wind took care of that. “Ah, yes, Tel Bagrussi. Quite a little cesspool. I’ve only been there once and I can assure you it’s not for the faint of heart or those with a sense of smell. They ferment a fish there that attracts a beetle that lays its eggs in the rotting flesh, which then hatch as larvae to consume the putrid mess. Now here’s where it gets interesting. They then take the larvae and grind them into a pulp which-”

Konowa raised a hand to ward off any more. “I don’t imagine we’ll be there for long. We just need to signal the fleet and jump aboard.”

“Quite true, quite true, but alas, we won’t be going to Tel Bagrussi.”

“Pardon?”

“It’s too close to Nazalla, I’m afraid. The citizenry there will be filled to overflowing with anti-Imperial fervor. It was a close run thing getting out of the city. Trying to get back in would be tantamount to storming a castle at this point. The Jewel of the Desert has returned, Major. Our time here, and by that I mean the Calahrian Empire, appears to be coming to a close. Oh, don’t look so surprised-there will be some in the royal court and more on the Imperial General Staff who will try to hang on to every far-flung piece of land like this, but I fear it’s a losing proposition. And even if that weren’t the case, we are faced with the immediate problem of no longer being able to travel under the auspices of the Suljak.”

Konowa sneered at the name. Both spiritual and political leader of the far-flung Hasshugeb tribes, the Suljak had played a dangerous game in invoking what he had thought was the ancient magic of Kaman Rhal. What he called forth instead was an abomination. The feeling of absolute stunned terror Konowa had just experienced when he’d come face to skeletal face with that dragon of bones still lingered.

Pimmer shuffled closer to Konowa. “I’m afraid the poor man has suffered quite a setback in the eyes of his people. Not that I’d wager on such a thing, but after his dalliance with Rhal’s dragon it’s only a matter of time before he’s taken out to a nice patch of desert and diced into small bits.”

Konowa felt no pity for the man. “He caused a lot of needless deaths.”

“I don’t disagree,” the Viceroy said, “but his demise will create turmoil among the tribes as each puts forth a new leader to claim his place. Couple that with the return of the Jewel of the Desert, which is viewed as a powerful symbol of native self-determination in these lands, and you have all the ingredients for a full-scale revolt.”

“That really isn’t our problem anymore,” Konowa said, emphasizing each word. “We have to get to the coast.” He felt his newfound sense of hope wavering in the face of this new reality.

“You are right, Major, and we will. There is a trading route that runs parallel with the coast to the west of here. It has the added benefit of having several fortifications guarding it, which should provide us with some lodging and provisions as we proceed. After no more than two or three days march, we’ll be able to turn north and be in Tel Martruk a day after that.”

“To the west?” Konowa asked, turning to look in that direction. Snow and darkness worked against his elven vision and revealed nothing.

“Toward Suhundam’s Hill, as a matter of fact,” Pimmer said, his voice dropping slightly. “The place where your elves are stationed. For all we know they could still be there even now, although with Her forest. .”

It was a thought Konowa had refused to explore, but now he could no longer avoid it. What if he found his elves dead? For all he knew they had been slaughtered and spitted on sarka har all across the desert. He started to curse, then caught himself. He should have found a way to go there first, but that damn Star had changed things. Only a few months ago the idea of the Stars were little more than long-held myths. Konowa wished desperately for those days.

“And the Prince approves of this plan?”

Pimmer looked over to Rallie and the Prince before turning back and motioning for Konowa to come closer still. “The Prince is in a rather delicate state at the moment. The loss of virtually the entire collection of the library has had a devastating effect on him. Defeating the Shadow Monarch’s forces, destroying Kaman Rhal’s dragon, and ensuring the safe return of a Star of power would be more than enough for most men, but his Highness, despite all the bluster, is not a warrior at heart. Not like his father and definitely not like you. I did my best and managed to grab up some truly remarkable documents and a few other priceless trinkets that are. .