“Not with standard tactics, no,” Tavi said.
Max grunted. “You have something in mind?”
Tavi smiled slightly. It was a better answer than “I have no idea how we’ll survive this,” without actually crossing the line into speaking a falsehood to his friend.
Max eyed him for a moment, then nodded, his big frame relaxing visibly. “Fine,” he said. “Be that way.”
“Thank you,” Tavi replied. “I will.”
Max was quiet for a moment more, watching the battle. “Seems a shame. Great furies, the Canim have guts.”
“That wasn’t exactly unexpected. Not after what the Narashans did to us.”
Max waved a hand. “Even so.”
Tavi nodded. “I know what you mean.”
“Is there anything that can be done for them?”
Tavi shook his head. “I don’t think so. Not given their attitude toward us. Lararl is determined to hold out, and enough of his people believe it’s possible to enable him to keep his position of authority.”
“I suppose,” Max answered. “I’m not sure our people would act any differently. Most of the High Lords would die fighting rather than be driven from their lands.”
“We’ll see. And before too long.”
The words had a sobering effect upon Tavi’s friend. He was quiet for several more moments.
“What do we do about Crassus?” Max asked.
“We wait,” Tavi replied. “For now. If he hasn’t made contact by this evening, we’ll consider our alternatives.”
“He’s all right,” Max said. “He’s faster than a hungry crow, and bloody near impossible to see while he’s flying. He’s fine.”
Of course, if that was true, where was Crassus? Again, Tavi refrained from speaking his mind. “I haven’t seen anything here that could present a real threat to him.”
Max nodded, then sighed. “Maybe old Magnus is up to something. Holding him back for some reason.”
“Maybe.”
Max growled and rose to his feet, pacing restlessly. “I just can’t stomach waiting around and doing nothing.”
Tavi reached into one of the leather pouches on his belt and produced a stick of charcoal and several folded pieces of parchment. “Here,” he said. “Take these and draw a map of the city. Every building you can see from up here. It might come in handy if we need to walk out for some reason.”
Max took the paper and charcoal. “You aren’t going to last long as First Lord if you go around handing your singulares compulsory homework, my lord.”
“I know. But if I’m forced to spend my time listening to all their complaining, I’ll knife myself and save the assassins the bother.”
Max snorted and ambled away, surveying the Canim city and beginning to draw on the topmost sheet of paper.
Kitai emerged from the shelter and settled down beside Tavi, watching the battle with mild disinterest. “That was kind of you.”
“Hmm?”
“Giving Max something to occupy his mind.”
“Oh, that,” Tavi said. “He’s quite a bit brighter than he lets on. He kept passing marks at the Academy for two years, despite the fact that he debauched himself practically every night. If I didn’t give him something to do, he’d drive us all insane.”
“A pity there is not more privacy,” Kitai murmured. “I could certainly use something to occupy my… mind.” She smiled and found Tavi’s hand with hers. “Walk with me?”
Tavi gave her a bemused smile. “That won’t take long.”
Kitai jerked her chin toward the carnage at the fortifications. “I’m tired of looking at that. You should be, too.”
Tavi gave the battle one last glance and shook his head. “Perhaps you’re right, but…” They rose and began pacing the edge of the roof. When they were the farthest they could get from the others on the roof, Tavi asked, “What’s on your mind?”
“We should have heard from Crassus by now,” she said.
“Yes.”
“And so you do nothing?”
“I am waiting.”
Kitai absorbed that for a moment, her expression serious. “Since I have known you, I have learned the single greatest activity at which you have little skill-sitting patiently.” Her green eyes searched his. “Especially not in the face of so massive a threat, chala.”
Tavi gave her half of a smile. “You’re worried that I’ve given in to despair.”
She opened her hand, palm up, and shrugged. “It is one possibility. But I am mostly worried because you are not acting like yourself. I expected you to have formulated half a dozen overly complicated escape plans by now.”
Tavi shook his head. “No.”
Kitai nodded. “Why not?”
“Because we need to wait,” Tavi said. He turned his gaze to the city below. “The air’s full of it. Nothing we do will accomplish anything-yet. We need to wait.”
“For what?”
Tavi shrugged. “Honestly? I’m not sure. It’s just…” He searched for words and found none. He shrugged at her again.
“Instinct,” Kitai said.
“Yes,” he said.
“You’ve had them before.”
“Yes.”
Kitai studied his eyes, then nodded, and said, “Reason enough.”
Horns suddenly brayed in the streets below the tower.
Tavi had to take several steps to be able to see their source, on the street at the tower’s base. Half a dozen taurga came down the street at full speed, lungs heaving loudly, bellowing their complaints. Canim of the city scattered before them, and one of the mounted Canim sent up another warning blast on his horn. The party of blue-armored warriors thundered to a halt at the base of the tower, and the leader of the column dismounted without bothering to secure his beast, and hurried inside.
The Canim left outside to care for the mounts looked exhausted. Their armor was battered, and minor wounds were in evidence on most of them. They’d obviously seen combat recently.
Tavi frowned. All the fighting was at the western edge of the city. These riders had entered from the east. Which raised the singular question: Whom had that patrol been fighting?
The Shuarans wouldn’t be fighting one another-not in the face of a threat like the Vord. Only three other parties could possibly be responsible. There was no way the taurga could have outrun Aleran Knights Aeris, and after two years of fighting Nasaug back in the Amaranth Vale, Tavi knew well how difficult it was to get the drop on the Canim commander. If Nasaug had gone on the offensive, Tavi thought it unlikely that so many riders would have escaped an attack.
Which left only one likely suspect…
Tavi felt his heartbeat begin to quicken and a trembling sensation low in his belly.
“There,” he told Kitai. “That’s it.”
Anag and a contingent of guards came to take them to Lararl within the hour.
“No,” Tavi told them calmly. “We’re not going anywhere. Tell Lararl that we’ve come to see him once already. If he wants to speak to us again, he can come up here.”
Anag stared at him for a moment. Then he said, “This is Lararl’s tower. Here, you do what he says.”
Tavi showed Anag his teeth as he folded his arms. “Apparently not.”
Anag growled and put his paw-hand to his sword.
Tavi sensed it when Maximus and Kitai, standing close behind him, tensed up. He did not move himself. He simply stared steadily at Anag.
Varg stepped forward in the precise instant that Anag’s anger began to waver. He stopped beside Tavi, and said, “Lararl has shamed himself enough without you adding to it, Anag.”
The younger Cane hesitated, his eyes flicking from Tavi to Varg.
Varg didn’t reach for his weapon. He strode forward to stand within range of Anag’s as-yet-undrawn blade without a flicker of apprehension. “You will go to Lararl,” Varg said. “You will tell him that we await him here.” Varg moved his arm then, slowly putting his hand to his weapon in a display made quietly deadly by the utter stillness in the rest of his body. “You will tell him that I am disinclined to be moved anywhere by any will but my own.”