Although taking Ryoto and killing theInkai would remain dreams for another day, Vespasian had stolen enough Shashidan gold to finance the War of Attrition for centuries, perhaps longer. From the start of the campaign, the legionnaires had had standing orders that should their leaders need to flee, they would defend the portals at all costs while sending as many soldiers home to Ellistium as they could. Only when the situation was completely hopeless would they close the portals, so as to keep the hated katsugai from surging through them and invading Ellistium. Many legionnaires would die while defending the portals. Many more would die once the portals were withdrawn, their fates sealed to the seething katsugai. But to save the emperor and to ensure the safety of Ellistium, there was no other way.
Julia Idaeus and thePon Q’tar had already entered one of the azure portals, and by now they would have safely reached Ellistium. In a supreme effort of the craft, Gracchus and the otherPon Q’tar members had managed to force the entire Oraculum Tempitatium into the portal ahead of them. It had been only the will of the fates that the Rustannican hierarchy had all been away from their tents supervising the transfer of yet more stolen gold when the first of Tristan’s meteors devastated the Rustannican war compound.
Vespasian was desperate to learn Tristan’s position and respond in kind, but in the confusion not one of his legionnaires could say from where theJin’Sai was unleashing his powers. Immediately after the Rustannican rulers made their decision to flee, the gold transfers were stopped and they entered the portals. But when Vespasian told Persephone to go without him, she staunchly refused.
“What are you going to do?” Persephone screamed at Vespasian. Just then the second of Tristan’s meteors had slammed into Vespasian’s assembled legions, killing tens of thousands more.
Despite the carnage all around him, Vespasian was determined to face theJin’Sai. He had no death wish, but theJin’Sai was here in this valley slaughtering his troops with abandon. Another chance to kill him such as this one might never come again. After Vespasian had seen to it that his advisors and Persephone had been safely sent home, he was determined to do what no one else could. He would remain behind for as long as possible and attack theJin’Sai in kind. Knowing that he had little time, he turned to look at Lucius.
“You are my most trusted friend!” he shouted. “Trust me one more time and do as I order you! Take my wife and go!”
Lucius looked into Vespasian’s eyes with a mixture of respect and fear for his old friend. After shaking his head angrily, he finally relented.
“Very well!” he shouted. “Do what you must, but you cannot allow yourself to fall into Shashidan hands!”
Vespasian heartily slapped his forearm against Lucius’ and grasped it not as an emperor to a tribune, but as one legionnaire to another.
“Thank you,” he said simply.
He then turned to look at his wife. “My love, forgive me,” he said.
The swift blow that Vespasian delivered to Persephone’s chin was enough to render her unconscious, but not so powerful as to do her permanent harm. As she crumpled, Vespasian caught her in his arms. He could have used the craft to subdue her, he realized, but she would surely have fought him in kind, wasting valuable time. After kissing her on the cheek, he handed her over to Lucius.
“Go!” he commanded.
Knowing that he had no other choice, with Persephone in his arms Lucius turned and ran as fast as he could toward one of the hugely swirling portals. After turning to give his emperor a final look, he stepped into the portal, and he and Persephone were gone.
Vespasian immediately ran to where his chariot stood waiting. Snatching the reins from his horse handler, he slapped them across the stallions’ rumps and headed straight for the worst of the fighting. If he was to find theJin’Sai he must reach his legion scouts, for only they might know from where Tristan was launching his powers.
Charging his careening chariot into the heart of the carnage, Vespasian offered a silent prayer to the Vagaries flame on behalf of Lucius and Persephone.
AS TRISTAN WATCHED THE GROTESQUE BATTLE RAGE ON, he remained stunned by the wanton loss of life. The death-dealing was extreme and without mercy. Hundreds of thousands were dying on either side, and the green valley floor was becoming littered with corpses, dead horses and Bedevilers, and smashed wagons and chariots. Although the vast gold deposits had been the reason for all this carnage, they had no meaning now. Nothing did, save for staying alive.
More than once it seemed that the Shashidans were about to rule the day, only to have the Rustannican legions regroup and attack again with renewed fury. Even so, Tristan came to realize that the advantage belonged to the katsugai. By and large, Hoshi’s plan had worked, and the legions were surrounded, their valiant soldiers corralled near the valley’s center.
Just then Tristan saw a shadow loom over the valley floor, not far from where their barge hovered. Looking up at the sky, he saw a huge, very dark cloud forming in the sky. It hovered higher than their barge and lay about one hundred meters west of them. It would not have seemed unusual had it not been so much larger and darker than the others. He mentioned the strange-looking cloud to Hoshi. As she lifted her war mask to take a better look, the blood suddenly drained from her face.
Knowing that there was no time to warn her barge pilot, Hoshi immediately called the craft and wrested control from him. At once she caused the barge to lunge forward and heel over hard on her starboard side.
But even Hoshi’s quick actions hadn’t been enough to avoid disaster altogether. As the first of Vespasian’s conjured lightning bolts loosed from the dark cloud that he had created, it streaked toward the tataki fune and struck a thunderous glancing blow to its starboard stern quarter.
The corner of the barge exploded into matchsticks and its bow tilted skyward as the craft careened through the air. Hundreds of katsugai were instantaneously burned to cinders by the lightning bolt and hundreds more tumbled through the partly destroyed wall to fall end over end toward certain death. Holding on to the front wall of the barge for dear life, Tristan and Hoshi struggled to remain standing while Hoshi fought to regain control of the pitching craft.
Finally she righted the barge. After desperately searching the valley floor, she turned back toward Tristan.
“Only Vespasian could have done that!” she shouted. “The emperor lives! Worse, he has found our position, but we do not know his!”
Before Tristan could answer, more terrible lightning ripped free of the ominous black cloud. Hoshi again did her best to maneuver the barge out of its path, this time barely succeeding. Tristan watched in awe as the lightning narrowly missed the leading edge of the barge. It passed so near that everyone aboard felt its heat and heard it crackle with energy as it plummeted earthward.
Using the craft to augment her sight, Hoshi searched desperately for Vespasian’s well-known gilded chariot and white stallions. She knew that she had little time to search him out before another lightning bolt struck. Suddenly she spied the chariot and the tall blond figure commanding it.
“There!” she shouted to Tristan. “Near where the river bends, there are three azure portals lying side by side! Do you see? Vespasian is there!”
Tristan found the bend in the river, and he could just make out the three azure portals. But because he could not call the craft in ways that Hoshi might, he did not see Vespasian.
“I see the portals!” Tristan shouted.
“Send one of your meteors there!” Hoshi shouted. “If you do it quickly, even he will not be able to escape it in time!”
Just as Tristan was about to act, to his horror he saw another dark shadow forming across the valley floor. Much as the first one had done, it too started to move.
Vespasian has called forth another cloud! Tristan realized. If the emperor simultaneously launched two lightning bolts from different directions, even Hoshi’s gifts wouldn’t be able to save them and they would be obliterated. Raising his hands, Tristan quickly launched another azure meteor. But even as he saw the meteor start plummeting earthward, he realized that another of Vespasian’s lightning bolts had been loosed.
Hoshi swung the barge over hard again, but this time the blow was far more direct. Striking the barge amidships, the lightning bolt blasted much of the craft to bits. Blown head over heels, Tristan, Hoshi, and thousands of katsugai tumbled toward the ground.
