“Yes. I left her in Vondium-”
“Oh?” I said.
He looked at me — by this time he was sitting at a table in a decent chair and we had forbidden squish pie to be brought any closer than an ulm — and he smiled.
“I know you think I am a clever fellow, Dray. But it would take Ngrangi Himself to have known you were here at Kanarsmot. No, the moment we heard in Ng’groga of the troubles in Vallia I set off.”
Across in the continent of Loh they had few if any airboats and travel would be slow and news hardly come by. “I took the liberty of going via Djanduin. I found the people wonderfully hospitable when they discovered I was acquainted with their king.”
“Acquainted,” I said.
Inch laughed at that. “Oh, yes, Ortyg Fellin Coper and Kytun Kholin Dom are great fellows. They greeted me right royally and gave me splendid fliers.”
“Fliers…”
“Well, of course. By Ngrozyan the Axe! You didn’t think I’d come empty-handed? I enlisted a parcel of likely rogues, all friends of mine, or friends of friends, and we look forward to a rollicking time, I can tell you.”
“How many?”
Five hundred or so — of course fifty of ’em are mindyfingling about somewhere in Pandahem, probably. One of the fliers broke down. And I sent half of ’em up to the Black Mountains under command of my second cousin, Brince, to sniff around and sort out any mischief up there.”
Delia glanced at me. Kov of the Black Mountains, our comrade Inch, with responsibilities there he took most seriously. Yet — he had flown first to Vondium…
All the same, the situation had to be explained to him, that same situation that had so puzzled and infuriated Seg.
Also, there was about Inch a new and refreshing air of determination, of a positive approach. He was still the same gangling affable fellow; but clearly discernible in his talk and his movements this new positive attitude to life marked off a change that had taken place in him, also. I said, “We no longer employ mercenaries in Vallia.” I saw his face. “Oh, there are still many paktuns in employ, of course, they have not all packed up and gone home. But as a part of the new imperial policy, Vallia is going to be liberated by Vallians.”
If he had stood up, flouncing, and shouted, before he stalked out, I could not have blamed him. This sounded like the basest ingratitude on my part. But Inch just stared at me, and scratched his nose, and pulled a long lock of that yellow hair.
“Yes. They told me something of the sort in Djanduin. If you’ve managed to persuade Kytun that he must not bring a horde of your ferocious Djang warriors to Vallia — well, the reasons must be cogent, most cogent indeed.” He gave a little laugh. “But, by Vox! What a sight that would be!”
“Aye.” I said. “It would indeed.”
There was a great deal to be talked about and histories to be filled in. Larghos the Left-Handed came in to finalize his orders and the position as we saw it then. He had known Inch as the Kov of the Black Mountains before the death of the emperor, Delia’s father. But when Nath came in, fresh from organizing the movements of the Phalanx, I braced myself up. Nath had not easily accepted Seg Segutorio. The last thing I wanted was friction between my comrades and my trusted lieutenants. Some emperors and dictators use antipathies between their subordinates to divide and rule; to me that is inefficient and, to boot, indicative of a society I have no wish to be a part of.
When the formalities were made, Inch, very gravely, said, “It was my misfortune not to have been with you, Kyr Nath, when you led the first Phalanx that the emperor has spoken of. I grieve that I missed so much. But I am here now and my axemen are under your command for the rest of this campaign.”
He cocked an eye at me and I wondered if he was bracing himself to break a few of his taboos for which he would have to do remarkable penances later. “I understand we no longer employ mercenaries. But these fellows are not paktuns. They are friends of mine, out for what rascally fun they can find and a little loot if that comes their way. We shall be going up to the Black Mountains before long.”
How difficult to judge when men and women talk in apparently open and frank ways just how much of the truth they are telling! Deeply thinking people do not rush into confidences the moment acquaintance is made with strangers. But I felt I knew Inch. He was a blade comrade. His words rang with truth, at least to me, and I knew that Delia also heard that truth.
Nath smiled.
“You are most welcome, kov. Like Kov Seg, you have been much spoken of in your absence. The Hakkodin will marvel at your axes.”
“They will that,” I said. And then I added, warningly, “But I think it takes a native Ng’grogan to swing that axe in just that way. We continue with our Vallian axes, Nath — do you not agree?”
“Assuredly, majister. And, anyway, I fancy some of my axemen could give Kov Inch’s men a gallop for their zorcas.”
The conversation eased after that. I was not fool enough to imagine that perfect comradely harmony would exist between Inch and Nath immediately and without a little time for rubbing off the sharp corners. But, at the least, a start had been made.
There remained the last parades and the music and the marching and the distribution of bobs, and then we took off for Vondium. News came in from Seg that he had inflicted a minor defeat on the enemies facing him, that the clansmen were arguing among themselves over what to do, and that given a little more time he rather fancied his chances at driving them into the sea. Nath read the message and said, at once and without preamble: “Let me go up there right away, majister, and join Kov Seg. We have the strength now-”
Farris looked troubled.
“My sailing fliers can-”
“Of course, Kov Farris!” broke in Nath, eagerly. “And we can drop right on them and discomfort them utterly.”
I’d heard this before. I pointed at the map, indicating the southwest. Nath said: “I know, majister. But the Fourth is coming along nicely, we have fresh regiments of churgurs and archers. And, above all, the southwest is quiet now.”
“Quiet. But what are they up to down there?”
“I,” said Inch, “would greatly like to see Seg again.”
There were a few other pallans in my rooms and each gave his opinion, honestly, for what it was worth, and all knowing I would have to make the final decision.
The notion that Vallia was some gigantic Jikaida board returned to me. One moved the pieces here and there and sought to contain strengths and to camouflage weaknesses. If you wonder why I hesitated to take the obvious step and rush up with all the forces at my disposal and smash the clansmen back into the sea, one reason was the ever-present threat from the south. Also the northwest remained a vague area of conflict in which racters fought Layco Jhansi’s people, and where Inch would soon plunge with his axemen into the Black Mountains. No — the reason lay in that recent conversation with the Star Lords. I had been snatched summarily from Vallia before. This time I waited. I knew I was to be called by the Everoinye. It was absolutely vital that Vallian affairs remained in honest and capable hands. Seg and Inch, Nath and Farris, all the others, would shoulder their burdens while I was away. If this was a doom laid on me then I waited for the stroke as I had waited in the dungeons of the Hanitchik.
The happy sounds of laughter outside and the clanging crash as the three-grained staffs of the guardsmen of the Sword Watch presented, heralded the joyous arrival of Delia, smiling, with Sasha, who looked radiant.
“The plans are all prepared and everything is going to be wonderful!” cried Delia. I, I must confess, gaped.
“And the first dance is to be a mandanillo,” said Sasha. “And you, Inch, are to lead off with me.”
So I remembered. Tonight all Vondium celebrated. The palace was to see a great ball and the lanterns would bloom colors to the night sky and the tables would groan with food and everyone would dance and sing and laugh as the moons cavorted through the sky between the stars, until the twin suns, Zim and Genodras, awoke to send us all to sleep at last.
“Let us dance the night away,” I said. “And in the morning, with Opaz, we will decide.”
