From the very beginning of the race, Gwaynn felt light and strong and he took up position directly behind Vio, which was his normal tactic. Today however, through the first half of the race and all the way to the turn he did not slowly fade behind, as was usual. At first he thought Vio was just having an off day, but as they made the turn he noticed that Krys and the others were well behind. As a group, the rest of the runners gave him little signs of encouragement as he and Vio passed by on the return run, all of course except B’dall, who merely scowled and would not meet Gwaynn’s eyes. Even Vio, from her position just ahead, spoke short words of encouragement every now and then.
“Here we go Gwaynn,” she said when they were within half a mile of the finish, and she began to speed up and finally pulled away from her new shadow. Gwaynn found he had nothing left and was unable to increase his speed though he tried desperately. He finished in all nearly a hundred yards behind her, which was much closer than anyone else had in quite a long while. She waited for him at the finish, still moving about to cool down. When she joined him, he was too winded to speak at first so they just walked together and slowly caught their breath. They both stripped and plunged into the sea, and were just emerging when Krys finished his run and was followed shortly thereafter by B’dall. Both Gwaynn and Vio were half-dressed and Krys was nearby, bent at the waist when B’dall reached them. Without a word he swung out and struck Gwaynn in the face with an elbow as he passed by.
Gwaynn, who had not yet pulled on his shirt, was watching as B’dall approached and was even aware of the blow coming, since it was not disguised all that well. But he forced himself to take it; otherwise he ran the risk of exposing his private sparring sessions. Though the blow caught him flush and hurt, not being able to defend against it, hurt more. He took the elbow almost directly in the mouth. His lip split and was starting to bleed even before he hit the sand. B’dall stopped and turned, intending to stand over Gwaynn, but to his surprise both Vio and Krys jumped between him and his victim, each of them crouched and ready in a fighting stance.
“Why did you do that?” Krys asked, advancing aggressively on the eldest student in the group. His assertiveness surprised and unnerved B’dall, who slowly began to retreat. But it was the look a pure anger on Vio’s face that really made him pause. He shook his head with a growl, then turned and moved up the path without any explanation.
“You should have defended yourself,” Vio said having witnessed the entire episode, understanding that B’dall threw the elbow with no deception. It was a blow Gwaynn could have blocked or avoided easily.
“No,” Gwaynn said, as Krys helped him to his feet. “No one is to know of my training. Master Kostek was very adamant about that,” he added, pausing here and there to spit blood out of his mouth. His lip was swelling quickly.
Vio frowned, wondering whether or not she could have taken a blow like that or would the years of training and instinct take over before she could think about it. That Gwaynn could have restrained himself impressed her more than his running and she was about to say so.
“Gwaaayyyn,” a cry sounded from above and they all turned in unison to see Mille running down the sandy hillside, worry written plainly on her face.
Gwaynn blushed and Vio scowled. Krys looked at his Prince with one eyebrow raised but made no comment as the girl hurried down the dune to the beach. Gwaynn liked Mille and over the past few days could think of no one else, but at the moment he was embarrassed by her attention.
“Are you alright? I saw him hit you. Oh my…look at your lip. We need to take you to see Pugg,” she said in one fast flowing stream of words.
“Um vine,” Gwaynn mumbled, his lip growing past the point where talking plainly was possible. He stopped her from using her skirt to wipe away the blood and used his own shirt instead.
Vio stormed off without another word, but Krys just stood there grinning at him. Gwaynn could see Tam and William coming up the beach and so he allowed Mille to lead him away before they arrived.
“I saw your finish,” Mille said as they moved up the bank. “That was the fastest you’ve ever run. Just wait until I tell father. He already thinks the world of you.” She continued to talk nearly non-stop all the way to the infirmary, but Gwaynn did not mind and just silently watched her lips and mouth. He like the way they moved and he liked the way she tossed her head about animatedly, causing her loose hair to flutter about.
?
Tar Navarra and his party were now deep into Massi territory having zigzagged their way down the country side, hitting every town and hamlet on their way to find some clue as to the passing of Afton Sath. All through the journey thoughts of the Fultan girl buzzed through Navarra’s mind like a persistent horse fly. At times he caught himself repeating her name over and over like some kind of sick mantra, and he found this disturbing. This, and the fact that they’d come across no clue of Sath’s movements, did nothing to improve his mood.
“Perhaps he did head to the coast and leave by trireme,” Sergeant Lindsay said. He was aware of the Executioner’s bad mood, but knew there was nothing to be done for it except for possibly another Massi execution. Four more town magistrates had met their end to Navarra’s axe, but still, no one revealed any knowledge of Afton Sath’s whereabouts. Either they didn’t know or they were taking such secrets to the grave.
Navarra did not want to admit it, but he was beginning to suspect that Sath indeed might have left the country. They should have come across some clue to his passing. Navarra still could not believe the former Weapons Master would abandon his countrymen, but he was also having trouble believing that they had yet to come across even a hint of his movements. No, Navarra thought, he would not have fled the country. It was far more probable that Sath had traveled completely cross-country avoiding all contact, not only shunning towns, but any country people as well.
“No, I think he is still in Massi,” Navarra said, spotting a rider coming very fast down the road in their direction, a long plume of dust in his wake. The Executioner pulled to a stop and waited. Lindsay signaled his men to fan out and rode forward alone to meet the approaching rider.
Navarra watched as they met a good distance away and spoke together for a brief moment, then both turned and moved to him.
“King Arsinol requests your immediate return to Solarii,” the rider spoke. Sergeant Lindsay wisely remained quiet.
Navarra’s temper flared. If they left the hunt for Sath now, his trail would go utterly cold.
“Did the King state his reasons?” he asked, openly attempting to stay calm.
The rider’s horse moved backwards, though it was not clear if the horse or the rider initiated the movement. “They have found the Massi Prince,” he said, suddenly very wary. The Executioner had a fearsome reputation for killing those who displeased him. “He is hiding on Noble Island.”
Tar Navarra sat very still, then suddenly lifted his head. “Then let us return to Solarii,” he finally whispered, much to the relief of the others.
VIII
Gwaynn’s swollen lip did not keep him from running the next day, nor did the fact that he’d worked late the previous day helping to repair the storm damage. The damage, though considerable, was less than Lane expected.
Again Gwaynn finished the run trailing only Vio, but after the finish B’dall just avoided him, and surprisingly Vio did as well. It bothered Gwaynn that she departed so quickly, but he did not have time to dwell on it because later that morning the Tars returned.
They appeared suddenly, along with a number of Travelers, several Healers and one Scholar. Gwaynn was on the infirmary roof with Lane repairing a wooden gutter when the group suddenly appeared outside the main hall.
Lane, who was perched on the very top of his tallest ladder, noticed that the lad’s attention was not on the job and turned, half expecting to see his daughter waltzing up the road. He watched as the arriving group looked about for a moment, then as one, moved into the Grand Hall, led by Tar Amon and Tar Kostek.
