Basil paused to catch his breath, and Alodar looked at the captive. His hair was matted in snarls; even though no breeze was blowing, Alodar caught the pungent odor of his body. His chest and legs were bare. The muscles trembled in his arms as he strained against the cords which bound his hands together behind his back. He looked around the circle of armed men, and his expression stiffened into a mask of defiance when he returned Basil's stare.
'The barbarian's mouth dropped when I showed him a few samples of my gems,' Basil continued. 'Great treasures were back in his camp and a fair trade for a few of the jewels could surely be made, he claimed. And while he fingered them, it was simple enough for my followers to overpower him from behind and drag him here.'
Basil stopped and looked at the dying embers of the fire. 'And I think that there is sufficient means in camp to make him tell us the rest of what we must know.' His eyes widened and he licked his lips as he pushed a coal aside with his boot 'Where the rest of his group is hiding and how many they may be. It can be found in a few hours, if you know how.'
'But the gift of one of your pretty stones would have been simple enough,' Grengor interrupted. 'And far less trouble than torturing one who probably would have dealt in good faith. I do not care for how you have acted in behalf of the fair lady, apothecary, and even less for what you propose to do.'
Basil turned and faced the marine. 'The temporary success of your master has weakened your judgment, sergeant,' he said. 'As you apparently have forgotten, Procolon is in grave danger of being overrun. We do not have time to barter for days with each scattered tribe that we meet. We must convince them in haste to harken to our banner, using whatever tools prove most expedient. And the fair lady will reward the suitor who provides the army to save her crown, not the one who labors over some petty distinction for what is just.' He stopped and looked back at the prisoner. 'Besides, he is as likely to be a treacherous brigand as a simple wanderer. There is no other way in which we may proceed.'
'What about enchantment?' Alodar said suddenly. 'He could hold nothing back if under the charm of a sorcerer. If his tribe proves friendly, then he can be freed.'
'Kelric would attempt no such feat when fully in health and in the comfort of Ambrosia.' Basil waved the words aside. 'He certainly will not try such an adventure now.'
'I was not thinking of Kelric,' Alodar replied coldly. 'I have studied enough that I am willing to give the charm a try.'
'An idle bluff,' Basil shot back. 'The fair lady will not be fooled by such blatant attempts to win further favor.'
'It is not a bluff,' Alodar said. 'I have been successful with far-seeing. There is no reason why I cannot enchant as well.'
Before Basil could reply, Vendora rose and extended her palm for silence. She looked at Alodar and smoothed a loose curl in place. 'Kelric never wavered in expounding the difficulties of his craft,' she said. 'And even in his prime, his enchantments numbered less than a dozen. Can you really perform as you claim?'
Alodar looked back into Vendora's eyes. 'I have never attempted it before, my fair lady,' he said, 'but my studies thus far have increased my confidence so that I feel there is a reasonable chance of success. If you would prefer touching the nomad's mind, rather than tearing his body, then I shall attempt it.'
Vendora's eyes narrowed, and then she looked back at Basil. 'If Alodar indeed can effect such enchantment, then it is a skill which I can employ well in my service,' she said. 'I thank you, Basil, for your efforts in my behalf, but I judge it is in my best interest if you turn the prisoner over to the aspiring sorcerer.'
Basil's scowl deepened, and he stood silently for a long moment. Finally, with a wave of disgust, he spun and tromped off to the other side of the firepit. His followers pushed the barbarian forward, and the nomad pitched to his knees at Alodar's feet.
'Get Melab,' Alodar said to Grengor, 'and prepare to hold the prisoner steady. I will consult with Kelric and learn what I must know.'
Alodar ran up the beach to the low ridge where Kelric slept. He touched the sorcerer's arm and gently rocked him back and forth. The flesh felt hot; as the eyes slowly opened, Alodar touched the bare forehead and frowned.
'Ah, my sugar plum,' Kelric's voice wheezed. 'Are you so impatient for more that you disturb my sleep?'
'It is only your student,' Alodar said. 'And I interrupt your rest on service to the queen.'
Kelric started to reply but gagged instead and then coughed spasmodically for several minutes. He shook awake and widened his eyes as he recognized Alodar hovering over him. 'Not more sorcery,' he whispered at last. 'You push too hard, Alodar, and will end in no better condition than I.'
'I wish that Basil carried with him the substance of his trade, rather than the tokens of his wealth,' Alodar said, ignoring the sorcerer's words. 'With the proper ingredients, I could brew an alchemical potion to cool the fever and purge your sickness. But neither my thaumaturgy or Duncan's magic sphere can offer any aid.'
Kelric shrugged and rattled out a deep sigh. 'It is far less discomforting than if I attempted one charm too many,' he said, 'and the visions that swim before my eyes are as good as any I have had when in a trance. Let it be, Alodar. Even though a sorcerer can see the workings of fate, he cannot alter them.'
Alodar looked back over his shoulder to the firepit. Grengor and Melab struggled to hold the captive in a sitting position, and Vendora stood with her hands on her hips, looking Alodar's way.
'I was successful with the cantrip last night,' Alodar said. 'Even the third repetition came without much difficulty. The queen now has need for an enchantment, and I feel I am ready to attempt it.'
'No, Alodar,' Kelric said weakly. 'Do not be misled just because one charm seems to progress well. You were probably fatigued and your senses dull. If you tried the very same cantrip fully alert, you might find it beyond your power to complete it.'
Kelric raised one shaky hand and motioned Alodar closer to his head. 'And the enchantment of a mind as complex as a man's is too large a step,' he continued softly. 'I studied for two years before my mentor judged me proficient enough to try it. If you have seen afar for the first time less than a day ago, then you must rest instead, before pursuing anything more.'
'But it is for the queen,' Alodar said, 'and the favor that I hope to find in her eyes because of it.'
'Ah, the fair lady.' Kelric choked out a laugh. 'Even I have not dared dream so high.' His chest heaved with effort for several moments more, and then he slowly shook his head. 'In my youth, it was always just one charm more,' he said. 'Just one more and my power would be great enough that men would bow their heads with respect and my choice of the ladies would be a pleasant confusion.' He shook his head a second time. 'You state that you do this for the queen, Alodar, but in the end I doubt that she will behave differently than any other.'
He stopped and looked Alodar in the eye and saw the resolution. 'But I recognize the fierceness that cannot be denied,' he sighed at last. 'And there will be little more that I will teach you. If you must know of enchantments, then listen to my words well.'
Kelric whispered the charm, and Alodar concentrated intently to remember the strange pattern of words. It was only a third the length of the cantrip for far-seeing. After a short while, he returned to Vendora and the others. He looked about and raised his brows in surprise as they all stepped back and flung their arms over their eyes. He coiled into a cross-legged position and directed Grengor and Melab to set the captive before him. While the two marines held the nomad's head steady and pressed his eyelids open, Alodar began the charm.
The first recital went smoothly enough; but from the first word of the second repetition, Alodar felt the beginning of the resistance. He spoke half a dozen words correctly, then almost gagged as he attempted the next. He tried to force his tongue flat in the bottom of his mouth, but spasms of nausea forced his lips closed each time he pursed them into a circle. He braced himself, concentrated on the next three in succession and finally forced them out.
He licked his spray-chapped lips, and beads of perspiration broke out on his forehead. The rest of the charm faded away. Almost in panic, he mentally grabbed at the chain of words as they seemed to disappear down a hole in his memory. He focused on the next and brought it back into sharpness. By holding his breath, he kept his stomach calm. With excruciating slowness, he finished the second recital.
Alodar felt dizzy, A chilling numbness ran up and down his legs. His tired body protested the abuse. The thought that the strain would only increase began to weigh heavily on his mind. He broke the starting word of the final repetition into syllables and concentrated on uttering the first correctly. But each time he opened his mouth, his lips trembled and he fought to force back the rumbles of his stomach. He gasped like a man choking and beat
