"We are the natuko," clicked the leader as he limped around the circle of his warriors. "The guardians of Krosan."
"I have no quarrel with you," said Kamahl. "I am a friend of the forest."
"No outsider is a friend," said the nantuko leader. "You have fought and killed in the forest before. Why should we trust you now?"
"I was sent by the druid Seton," replied Kamahl as he scanned the forest for some means of escape.
"Seton has no authority over us," said the leader, still pacing around Kamahl. "Leave now."
As the leader limped around him, Kamahl noticed something strange. All of the nantuko seemed to be following the leader's movement and only looked at Kamahl when he turned his head or lifted an arm. The barbarian wondered if, in the ever-changing colors of the forest, the bugs saw motion more than color and light.
"I seek the guardian in the heart of the forest. He is waiting for me," said Kamahl as he stood still and built up a small reserve of mana in his palms. "I do not wish to fight you, but I will not turn away from my quest."
"Then you shall die," clicked the leader from behind Kamahl. The leader jumped at Kamahl, and the barbarian closed his eyes as he dropped the twin balls of mana, which exploded in a burst of light and a billowing cloud of smoke. Kamahl dived to the ground and rolled in between the nantuko warriors to his side. Ducking behind a tree just outside the circle of mantis warriors, the barbarian backed into the trunk and willed his body to complete stillness, hoping his guess about their vision was correct.
For several tense minutes Kamahl stood there, mere yards from his newest pursuers. Several nantuko passed right by him, but none seemed to notice the barbarian. After another few minutes, the warriors left the area, broadening their search for their missing prey.
Kamahl stood and listened, making sure that all of the bug warriors had truly left. He then moved from tree to tree, watching for any movement that might betray his followers. Several times over the course of the next hour, the barbarian caught sight of nantuko and dropped to the ground or dived into a bush to become just another part of the landscape.
After nightfall, Kamahl became somewhat bolder. He needed better camouflage come morning, and he found it on the banks of a stream that ran through the forest. Dipping his hands in the mud, Kamahl covered his face, arms, and legs with wide swaths of dark brown muck.
Heading back into the trees, Kamahl pulled several vines down from a tree, ripped them into strips, and tied them around his arms, legs, and torso to break up the large areas of brown on his body. Taking one last vine, Kamahl tied it around his forehead to prevent the glint of his eyes from betraying him.
The next morning Kamahl headed back into the trees. He walked the branches himself, jumping from tree to tree and creating swinging vines as needed to head deeper into the forest.
CHAPTER 23
Laquatas was quite pleased with himself. Not only had he convinced Commander Eesha to return to the Citadel, but now Braids had decided to leave as well, ostensibly to report back to the First. Perhaps his luck was returning, thought the mer.
Laquatas was no fool. He knew there must be more going on in Braids's mind than a sudden need for direction from her superior. But he must not squander the gift she had given him. He still had at least one trick left up his sleeve if Havelock could muster any of his remaining warriors for one last attempt at the Mirari. And with the orb in his hands, not even the First could stand before him. Chainer had already proven that.
But I must leave nothing to chance, thought Laquatas as he prepared for the morning's march. Tonight I shall begin to exert my control over the two lieutenants, lest their commanders return sooner than I expect.
The morning's march went well for the allied forces. The Order phalanx cut their way through the underbrush, leaving nothing but tall trees alive in their wake. Still nothing attacked the troops. Laquatas reached out with his mind to scan for predators, but it was just as it had been when he pursued Kamahl into the forest-deserted of all wildlife larger than rodents.
"Oddly quiet, isn't it, Ambassador," said Traybor, coming up beside the mer.
Laquatas thought the summoner had overly stressed the word "ambassador," but he decided to let it go. He needed Traybor-for now, at least.
"I quite agree," said the mer, smiling broadly. "I had expected to be fighting for every yard we gained."
"Of course we could have passed right by the barbarian and never known it at this rate," said Traybor. "Especially with those Order idiots destroying the trail ahead of us."
"Not to worry, young man," said Laquatas. "I'm sure your mistress has told you that anyone who has ever come into contact with the Mirari can sense its location. I can tell you that it is definitely in front of us."
"But you can't tell where it's been, can you, Ambassador?" asked Traybor, subtly turning the appellation into a slur with his intonation. "Did you know that Kamahl left this trail two nights ago with a second fully laden horse and then returned again yesterday without his extra load? I would say that the barbarian's sister is at the end of that second trail, which has now been all but destroyed by those overzealous fools."
"Interesting information," said Laquatas, "but useless to us at the moment. Our forces are too small to split up, and we can't afford any delays with Kamahl already two days ahead. If we cannot overpower the barbarian when we reach him, we can always return for the girl. Now, you should return to your task, which is safeguarding the Order troops as they cleanse our path."
Just then, from the sides of the phalanx, a half-dozen creatures dropped from the trees, slashed into the nearest Order warriors, and then vaulted back into the trees, disappearing into the leaves before any of the allied forces could even react.
From behind Laquatas came a call from Dinell. "Phalanx halt," yelled the human lieutenant as he rode his horse up through the Cabal summoners. "What just happened here?"
Laquatas and Traybor followed the lieutenant up to the front ranks. The Order troops were scanning the trees. Laquatas reached out again with his mind but could find no trace of the attackers. He had let his scans lapse while Traybor talked to him. Had the summoner known about the impending attack and diverted his attention on purpose? Laquatas decided he'd better watch that one more closely during this campaign.
"Patrolmen report," barked Dinell from atop his horse. "What happened?
The Order soldier tore his eyes away from the trees to look at his commanding officer. "Bugs, sir," he said. "Giant bugs dropped from the trees, slaughtered six men, then disappeared."
Laquatas, Dinell, and Traybor all looked down at the remains of the dead soldiers. Two had been decapitated, another disemboweled, and three more had been cut cleanly in half, right through the rib cages.
"What in the nine hells could do this so quickly?" asked Dinell looking at Laquatas and Traybor. "This was no bug attack."
"Nantuko," said Traybor. "The warriors of the forest."
"You knew about these… these warriors and didn't warn us?" asked Dinell. "How typical of the Cabal."
"I only know of them from other summoners," said Traybor. "Believe me, only the craziest Cabal summoners have ever tagged a nantuko and lived to return to the pits. Even in the pits they are hard to control and harder to defeat."
"What are they?"
"Just as your man said," replied Traybor, "giant bugs. They guard the forest, ever-present but never seen-at least not by many who leave the forest alive. Few who have survived the mysteries of Krosan have ever caught more than a fleeting glimpse of the nantuko, and then usually only as they fled from the beasts. The bugs hide in plain sight, attack with blinding speed, and are gone before their foes drop to the ground."