When I returned to the tent, I found Rascha sitting with Virt and Aelburr. I sat with them, and soon after that Crown came along. "Morning, soldiers," he said cheerfully. "Today we take them."
Rascha nodded. "What do you think of the earthworks on the southwest side? They got pretty messed up last night."
He nodded. "It wouldn't hurt to build them up again."
Dunn came over then. He said, "Sergeant, I'd like"
"No," said Crown. "Mora's taking the colors. If she goes down, then you're up. So stick by her. And keep her alive, if you can. You can answer to Dortmond if she shines."
"Yes, Sergeant. Thank you, Sergeant."
Dunn walked away. I shook my head. "I just don't get it."
Crown looked me up and down. "No, you wouldn't, would you?" He walked off.
"I think," I said, "that I've just been insulted."
"Don't let it keep you up nights," said Virt.
From farther down the line someone called out, "Here they come," and we walked up to the remains of the earthworks and waited for the assault to begin.
They came, and we held them off, and they came, and we held them off. The whole time Loiosh remained on my shoulder, maybe for whatever effect it might have on anyone who faced me. I kept asking him why he didn't get to somewhere safe, but I didn't get a satisfactory answer, just questions to which I couldn't give a satisfactory answer. My legs kept wanting to buckleresidual effects from getting hit the day before, but I never quite collapsed at the wrong time. If the Necromancer had actually done something, well, it must have worked.
After the second attack, Virt said, "Have you noticed that every time they attack they've been knocking away at the earthworks?"
"Uh … you're right."
"And that they attack with more troops each time?"
"Right again," I said. "You're on a roll. Don't stop now."
"They're forming up for another charge," she said.
Rascha came by and said, "Up to the line again. Where's Aelburr?"
"I'll sit this one out, I think," he said.
That was when we noticed that he was flat on his back, bleeding from two distinct chest wounds and another on his right leg. "Physic!" came the call, from Rascha and Virt at the same time.
As the physicker approached, Virt said, "We're awfully cut up. Do we have anyone left to plug the holes?"
"No," said Rascha. "We've got holes everywhere. About twelve percent casualties. And, from the looks of things, I don't think we can expect any support from Brigade."
"Oh," said Virt.
"Time for someone to think of something clever," I suggested, at which moment the juice-drum gave the call to prepare for a charge. I said, "That wasn't the sort of clever I was thinking of."
Virt said, "This should be interesting."
"Interesting?" I said. "We're too weak to defend, so we attack? That isn't sound military practice, is it?"
"No," said Virt.
"Well good," I said. "See? I've learned something."
"I'm sure it will do you a lot of good next time you enlist." She paused. "It's been done before, though. And it isn't that bad an idea. One time, at Kipper Bay, we" She broke off abruptly and pointed. "I'll tell you the story later," she said optimistically.
They were coming up the hill, and there was something horribly determined about how they came. I didn't like it at all. We prepared to go down the hill. I liked that even less. At least we had elevation on our side.
One way or the other, we were going to settle it right now.
"Well," said Loiosh. "Here you are."
"No shit," I said.
17The Limitations of Wit
I turned back toward Fornia and stood there next to Daymar as Napper approached from behind me to my left, and the whole bloody war approached from behind me to my right.
Napper got there first. He came up next to me, holding a short, heavy sword that was streaked with red. I glanced over at him, and his eyes were shining, and he wore a delighted smile all over his face. I said, "Napper, meet Daymar. Daymar, Napper. And that is the Count of Fornia. Anyone bring wine? Cheese? I could manage some biscuits."
The three who had been assigned to watch us didn't think I was very funny, but neither did they construe my remarks as suspicious enough to cut us down. "Your weapons," said one of them.
"Daymar, can you break through the block and get us out of here?"
"No," he explained gently. "They strengthened the block after I broke through it."
"Pity," I said.
"If I can get about half an hour"
He might as well have asked for half a year. "Yeah, well, I'll let you know."
"Weapons," repeated the soldier. "Now."
"What's the plan, Vlad?" said Napper, loud enough for everyone to hear.
"The good news is that we're negotiating," I told him. "The bad news is that I surrendered."
"You what?"
"On the other hand, if he plans to kill me, I'll have to say the surrender is off. In the meantime, you'd best give the nice man your sword. I would, too, but I don't have one."
"Carefully," added the guard. "Unbuckle the belt and let it fall."
He looked fairly tough. So did the others. I didn't like Napper's chances against all three of them. One was between us and Fornia, the others flanked us. Napper began to comply, with exaggerated slowness.
"I don't suppose, Daymar, you know what they're doing?"
"No," said Daymar. "He has me bbcked." Daymar sounded hurt.
Orders came barking out from somewhere in the group, and swords were drawn. I drew in my breath, terrified all over again, but the honor guard and the sorcerers turned to face the approaching battle. For an instant, with all the movement, I had a clear shot at Fornia, but then it was gone before I could have taken it even if I'd been so inclined.
There was an odd, unreal quality to the whole thing that lingers in my memory even now. I stood with Daymar on one side of me and Napper on the other, with the whole war, or at least a crucial part of it, rushing down on me, with Fornia amidst his honor guard and sorcerers turning away from us as if we were suddenly no part of their world and certainly no threat to them.
Well, okay, we were no threat to them.
I knew what Fornia was doing, I knew why he was doing it, I knew where it would lead; and there wasn't anything I could do about it.
There's a certain frustration that players of S'yang Stones get when their best shots fail and their opponents keep getting lucky breaks. I've seen it, and I've had it happen to me. You start just throwing your stones, even the flat ones, almost at random, as if you want to punish yourself for your bad luck by playing badly. I was feeling the same thing right now.
Was I making a bad play out of frustration, or was I really getting the odds I needed, now that the battle was loud and everyone had their backs to us?
I threw a shuriken into the throat of the man in front of us, the one who was threatening Napper, and then planted a knife in the throat of the one to my left; I heard Napper draw his sword, and by the time I turned around the third of the guards was dead and Napper was finishing off the one I'd started on. I caught of glimpse of Daymar staring, wide-eyed.
Better yet, Fornia hadn't noticed, nor had any of his group.
Napper said, "What's the plan?"
That almost made me laugh. A little demon in my head wanted me to say "Kill them all," but I resisted temptation.
"Boss, does this situation seem a little absurd to you?"
"Absurd? Well, among other things, yes."
Then Morrolan's band reached Fornia's honor guard, and the game was being played in earnest.
I saw Aliera, now dismounted, standing next to Morrolan; around them were several others I didn't recognize, and behind themwhere she came from I couldn't saybehind them, mounted, was Sethra Lavode, holding the weapon I knew to be Iceflame. They were all of them heading straight for Fornia, who was waiting with the patience of a gambler who has staked everything he has on one throw and knows, now that the coins are spinning, that all he can do is wait and see which way they land.