"My mother? Smyrena?" That hadn't occurred to him. "Smyrena. It wasn't a lucky name." His mother had been burned at the stake for witchcraft. "I don't know." How much did the King suspect? You couldn't tell a man his wife was behind half his troubles. He might take a poke at you. And the poke Varthlokkur dreaded was a comment about Ethrian to Nepanthe.
And what of Mist? She couldn't ignore the eastern situation...
"There you go again. If you can't talk to Bragi, tell Derel Prataxis. Bragi will put up with anything from him."
"That might do." But he was thinking of telling Michael Trebilcock. He and Michael understood one another. And Michael had the power to do something...
"What about the name?" Nepanthe's eyes were heavy. She wanted an answer before sleep took her.
"Smyrena will be fine. Mother would be pleased." He considered the slow cloud castles. "Smyrena it is. Hello, little Smyrena."
The infant seemed to smile.
13 Year 1016 afe
The Fates of Gods and Emperors
SHIH-KA'I LIMPED UP the last few steps to the top of Lioantung's wall. Pan ku remained half a step behind, ready to offer support. He avoided suggesting that his master might require it.
Lord Ssu-ma smiled as he leaned against the battlements. Pan ku need not have been concerned. He was, simply, tired and hobbling on an unexpected corn.
The countryside was alive with refugees. The city's civilians were joining them. The air quivered with panic. Shih-ka'i hoped it would not spread to the legions, yet could not banish its touch himself. The disaster on the Tusghus had been more than the loss of a line. It had introduced Shih-ka'i and his officers to real doubt about their ability to defeat the Deliverer.
"Did I make a wise decision, Pan ku?" He stared eastward. Somewhere in those forests Northern Army was on the attack.
"You had no choice, Lord. The men might have lost their confidence."
"And if it's another disaster?"
"Best to find out now. We have to know if it was an isolated incident."
Shih-ka'i did not understand what had happened on the Tusghus. That terrible sound had come thundering from the she-bear, shattering the minds and wills of his legionnaires... He'd never heard of anything like it. His secret heart filled with fear when he thought of facing it again. Armed with that weapon, the Deliverer was unstoppable.
It had to be the thing in the desert. Had to be.
"Lord," Pan ku said softly, "Lord Lun-yu."
Shih-ka'i watched Tasi-feng labor up the stair. Lord Lun-yu had less energy than he. "Catch your breath."
"Last civilians cleared out, Lord," Tasi-feng reported. "May have problems later. Some prisoners escaped in the confusion."
"That was to be expected, I suppose. It's the lesser risk. Any word from out there?"
"Still early, Lord, but they seem to be doing well."
"No sign of the problem we had on the Tusghus?"
"None, Lord." Tasi-feng did not conceal his relief. "Maybe they're saving it for Lioantung."
"Maybe." Shih-ka'i had some thoughts on the subject. He meant to pursue them... Well, it had to wait. He was needed here until the Deliverer's intentions became clear.
Nervous, unable to stand still, Shih-ka'i scanned the sky. "Nice day," he observed. It was.
"It's been nice all summer, Lord." Tasi-feng scanned the sky too. Flyers would presage the Deliverer's appearance. Their confidence had been shaken. They had begun to anticipate disaster.
One of Tasi-feng's officers appeared later. "Execution has been perfect, Lord. No sign of the doom of the Tusghus. We have a great tactical victory."
Shih-ka'i grinned into his mask, smacked a fist against the battlements. "Damn!" he said softly. "By damn! Lord Lun-yu, we'll stop him yet."
Northern Army double-timed through the gates. Their joy was contagious. "They're slipping discipline," Shih-ka'i muttered to Pan ku.
"Justifiable, wouldn't you say, Lord?"
"No doubt. No doubt." Shih-ka'i was elated himself. The battle had gone perfectly. The old confidence had returned. "We'll stop them here."
A messenger approached. "Lord Ssu-ma. Lord Lun-yu begs your presence in the command center."
"Did he say why?"
"No, Lord."
"I'll be there directly." Once the messenger departed, "Any ideas, Pan ku?"
"They've been watching the Matayangan front, Lord. Maybe something's happened there."
Something had. Lord Kuo's hidden armies had taken the offensive. But that was old news. Had Matayanga sprung a surprise of its own?
Shih-ka'i glanced at the handful of flyers circling above. The siege was about to begin.
He looked forward to it. Lioantung would be the rock against which the Deliverer would shatter himself. Or Lord Ssu-ma Shih-kaTs last battlefield. He had people developing a strategy to pursue should the city fall, but theirs was a half-hearted effort. The country west of Lioantung was dense with refugees. Populations had been compressed too much for further effective removal from the Deliverer's grasp.
The fates of himself, the Deliverer, and quite possibly the empire hung on this old fortress town.
The senior Tervola had assembled in the command center. Their soft talk faded when Shih-ka'i entered. "Politics again, Lord," Pan ku whispered.
"I suspect so."
The Tervola made room for him at the tabletop map of the empire. He and his staff had been following the Matayangan war closely of late. It might affect what they could do here.
The field situation appeared unchanged. "What is it?" he demanded.
Tasi-feng suggested, "Perhaps we could speak in private?"
Shih-ka'i peered into the jeweled eyes of Tasi-feng's mask. "The changing of the guard, eh?"
"Yes, Lord."
"What's to be discussed? Nothing's changed. We have our hands full here. The Deliverer's dragons are overhead."
"Lord... "
"Your games are your games. We have a job. Let's stick to it, eh? What's going on out there can take care of itself. If your candidate wins and doesn't like me, she can send me back to the Fourth Demonstration."
"Lord, we just wanted you to know what was happening. It's not likely to affect us."
"Then talk it out and get back to work. The Deliverer is on his way."
"As you command, Lord." Tasi-feng nodded to someone at the table. The Tervola dispersed.
"I'll be on the wall, watching him come up," Shih-ka'i said. "I don't want to hear any more politics while I'm commander. Understood?"
Tasi-feng bowed slightly. "As you command, Lord. We're perfectly satisfied."
The Deliverer's patrols were encircling the city when Shih-ka'i reached the wall. "What do you think, Pan ku? Send out skirmishers?"
Pan ku shrugged.
"No. Of course not. They're almost done. Make them come to us." The patrols looked like the dead now. "Time is on our side. Another week and he won't have anything left."
The hours rolled. The sun declined. The moon came out. Shih-ka'i remained rooted, watching besiegers who pitched no tents, who lighted no campfires, who merely stood waiting in lines surrounding the city.
"What will he try, Pan ku?"
"That sound again, Lord. Something to shake the walls."
"I'd say so, too. But we can take that away from him."
"Lord?"
"Hsu Shen... "
Pan ku pointed. "Someone coming, Lord."
A shadow flitted toward them, darting from one pool of darkness to another. Pan ku drew his longsword. Shih-ka'i let his senses reach out, felt no danger. "Easy. I think he's friendly."
Pan ku did not relax. He was not that kind of man.