At the end of the alley, he turned northward, moving at almost a run. Another explosion echoed through the night. Rahl thought that was most likely one of the warehouses…or the other wagon. A third explosion followed, and then a fourth, the last most likely the main Merchant Association building. Most of Swartheld was built of stone and tile. Rahl just hoped that would restrict the spread of fire, but the low clouds just east of him and overhead were beginning to turn a faint ruddy red.
Rahl forced himself to walk, quickly, but to walk.
A long whistle, with three short blasts, sounded. Bells began to clang. Because of the heat and falling flaming debris, Rahl had to go farther north to get on the avenue back to the harbor. He could only hope that those in Eneld’s cantina had survived and that not too many others were hurt, but what else could he have done?
As he neared the pier-guard station, Rahl could sense Suvynt’s agitation.
Rahl looked back once more. To the southwest, a low flickering of orange marked where the Nylan Merchant Association had been. Then he frowned. Why would Suvynt be so agitated?
Rahl used the light shield and the wall to get past the duty mage-guard, glad that most of the chaos-mages weren’t nearly so good with order-sensing.
Once he was near the mage-guard station, Rahl released the light shield and sat down on a shadowed bench near the tariff enumerators’ building. He just had to rest for a moment…and think.
No one would know what he had done-not until the captain returned and questioned him, and then he’d be in more than a little trouble. But what else could he have done? Better that the Nylan Merchant Association went up in flames than a half score or more of other trading houses.
The other question was what else could he do? What should he do?
He shook his head, then stood and walked toward the mage-guard station. He just hoped that the captain had returned.
The duty area in the mage-guard station held only the duty mage-guard, who looked up as Rahl entered.
“Has the captain returned yet, Nyhart?”
“No. No one’s seen him. Even the undercaptain was looking for him. Suvynt sent word that there’s a huge fire somewhere in the merchant area. Have you seen it?”
“You can see the flames from the piers,” Rahl admitted.
“The captain might be at the city station,” suggested Nyhart.
Behind Rahl, the main door opened. Both mage-guards turned as Undercaptain Craelyt strode into the building.
“Nyhart…see who’s available to strengthen the watches on the pier-guard station and have them report to me there,” ordered Craelyt. “You can leave the desk for a while. Get one of the mage-clerks to act as a messenger.”
“Yes, ser.”
“Rahl, you come with me.”
“Yes, ser.”
Craelyt turned and headed out, clearly expecting Rahl to catch up with him.
Rahl had almost to run for several steps before he drew abreast of the swiftly walking undercaptain.
Craelyt was taking the shorter-and darker-way to the pier-guard station, the one on the south side of the mage-guard building, where there were no lights and little beside refuse bins, pavement and the stone wall that separated the harbor and mage-guard buildings from the warehouses and other commercial establishments farther to the south.
“So…where have you been this evening, Rahl? You left the mess before I could find you.” Craelyt’s voice was almost jovial, but Rahl could sense the buildup of chaos around the undercaptain.
What could Rahl do? He still didn’t know where the captain was, or how exactly the Jeranyi and Shyret had been connected. “Where is the captain, ser?”
“He seems not to be around. It could be that he’s at the other station with all the trouble they’re having. That’s not your concern. Your concern ought to be following orders, and it’s clear that you haven’t been.”
Although Craelyt had not said anything incriminating, there was no one with him, and that alone suggested to Rahl that all was not as it should be.
“Ser? Exactly how have I not been following orders? I’ve been exactly where I’ve been ordered to be. I’ve been tested for my arms skills, and I’ve stood duties under instruction.”
Craelyt stopped and turned, facing Rahl. “You were told not to snoop around the Nylan Merchant Association. You kept doing that. You were told to report to the captain. You didn’t. Those failures alone are enough to send you to Highpoint, if not worse.”
“There wasn’t anything to report, ser.” Not until today, Rahl added to himself. “I never even entered the Nylan Merchant Association building, and I’ve never seen or talked to anyone who I worked with or talked to.” All that was certainly true.
“You know, Rahl, you’re one of those types I dislike. You follow the letter of the rules and ignore their spirit. That’s as much insubordination as outright disobedience.”
Rahl tried again. “It’s not against the Codex or the Manual, ser, to walk the streets of Swartheld and to try to recall the memories someone stole from you.”
Craelyt smiled, coolly. “Always blaming someone else, aren’t you. They stole your memories. Why can’t you admit that you forgot? They wouldn’t explain things so that you could understand, but you never made any real effort. They insisted that you take responsibility for your actions, and you just accused them of failing to understand. I know your type, always blaming others. It’s too bad you never could really control your abilities, Rahl. You’d never be more than a half mage, if that. You know, the magisters on Recluce were right to exile you. You’re the kind that always wants someone else to explain. You’ve never really worked that hard. Taryl was wrong. He always is.”
Rahl could feel the rage surging through him. Just who was Craelyt to make such statements? He certainly hadn’t been a loader in Luba.
“The mage-guards don’t need whiners like you.”
Whhhstt!
The force of the fire-bolt threw Rahl backward, almost into the wall. He staggered, both at the force of the chaos-bolt, and at the suddenness.
Whhsst!
Rahl’s shields barely held back the second blow. Why was he having such trouble? Craelyt’s chaos-bolts weren’t that strong. He dodged to one side, behind a stone refuse bin.
“Coward. You always were.”
For a moment, Rahl’s rage surged. Then he swallowed. Anger! That had been what Craelyt was doing. Taunting Rahl enough to get him angry without Rahl’s totally realizing it so as to weaken him. The chill of that realization drained away all fury, and Rahl concentrated on feeling everything around him, letting himself take in the order that was everywhere.
Whhsstt!
Chaos splashed around Rahl, but with his shields gaining strength every moment, he stepped out from behind the stone and walked toward the undercaptain.
For the first time, Rahl caught a sense of uncertainty as he approached the other man, but Craelyt barely hesitated as he drew the shimmering falchiona. Rahl quickly pulled out his truncheon.
“Exercise rooms are for boasting. Let’s see how you are when it counts, whiner.” The undercaptain’s blade flashed toward Rahl.
Rahl slid the heavy blade away, twisting the truncheon just slightly so that the falchiona’s edge would not bite into the dark oak and catch, then used an upward stroke to knock the undercaptain’s blade away.
Whsstt!
The chaos sleeted away from Rahl’s shields, and Rahl moved forward, again deflecting the falchiona, this time downward.