Neversfall - Ed Gentry [41]
"What about the lost company, sir? Who among them knew the phrase?"
"Their commander, certainly, and their arcanists," Jhoqo said. "I don't know who else. I knew that regiment's commander. He was a good man and wouldn't have revealed the phrase even under duress."
"And their mage?" Taennen asked.
"I don't know," Jhoqo said. "Perhaps that's the answer- the citadel's former wizard was captured and revealed the phrase under torture. Or perhaps he had been on the intruders' side all along."
"That's possible, sir," Taennen said. The answer seemed too easy to Taennen but, as his own father had said, often the easy answer was the right answer.
"It's more than possible. Much as I hate to doubt the fellow, it's the only logical answer," Jhoqo said, turning toward the door. "Come to my office at first light, Durir. We have plans to discuss."
Taennen looked to Guk a few moments after the door closed. "We'll see that removed," he said, pointing to the fecal matter.
"It does not matter," Guk said.
"It does to me. It isn't healthy," Taennen said.
When no response came, Taennen turned for the door. As he grasped the iron handle, his gooseflesh leaped again at the sound of the formians voice behind him.
+ + + + +
From her watch position on the southern wall Loraica studied the empty plains that unfolded before her eyes, seeming to roll on endlessly. Even with their patrol time before the mission, Loraica was accustomed to life in the cities of Estagund, and she missed the smells of civilization, even the unpleasant ones. At Neversfall, she could smell only the nearby woods, and the Aerilpar held an odor of rot and decay mixed with the usual clean smells of foliage that she found unsettling, unlike any forest she'd ever experienced.
She scanned the ground below her in the darkness. Twice she believed she might have spotted something before picking out the movement as some sort of prairie rodent scuttling along the ground. When she spotted the creature again, she was tempted to fetch a bow to make a meal of it for the morning, but she decided to let it go about its foraging. It was nocturnal, much like herself, after all, and she honored that kinship.
"Report."
Loraica spun, sword in hand in a flash, to face Jhoqo, who had approached her from behind. She did her best to settle her racing heart and school her face against the shock.
"No report, sir," she said.
Jhoqo nodded and leaned against the outer wall, looking out into the vast night.
"You heard that Orir Jamaluddat returned?" he asked.
Loraica affirmed, sheathing her sword. "I haven't heard the details."
"They say a trap was set for them," he said, jerking his chin toward the forest, "a ring of fire that erupted around them. But they escaped."
"Are they all right? What happened?" Loraica said.
"They're fine. Two of the wall guards earlier did report seeing some smoke from the forest interior," he said.
"So they did not find the invaders?" Loraica asked.
"No," he said.
"If they attacked the citadel simply to set a trap for us in the woods, they are foolish. They lost several men in the fight," she said.
"Whose bodies we can't even examine because they took the damned things," Jhoqo said.
Loraica nodded. "Sir, I beg your pardon if I'm too bold, but what's on your mind?"
He looked up from the floor and smiled. "Very well. I can always count on you to get to the heart of the matter, Terir. I need your help," he said, looking her in the eyes.
"Anything, sir," she said.
He blew out a long breath, leaning against the walls once again, and looked out into the dark plains. "Watch her. Tell me what she does, who she talks to, where she goes."
"Sir…" she started but didn't know how to finish. He was asking her to spy on Adeenya. She couldn't think of anything less becoming a Maquar, let alone an officer.