Chereth brought the knife up and slammed it down, plunging it through the vines and deep into Berun's flesh, right where his neck joined his shoulder, right into the large vein. Chereth pulled out the blade and blood spurted all over them both. It seemed to fuel the druid's fury. He turned the knife and stabbed "I-!"
Again.
"— am-!"
Again.
"— through-!" Again, "-with-!" Again.
"— you!"
He stopped and let go, leaving the blade stuck between two of Berun's ribs. The second-or had it been the third? — strike had pierced one of Berun's lungs, and he could feel blood beginning to fill his chest. He coughed once, bringing out a spurt of blood. He could hear Talieth crying.
Berun smiled.
"What?" Chereth stood there, panting from exertion. "Why are you smiling?"
"The… second-" Berun coughed again, spraying more blood.
"The second?"
"— thing!" Berun had to pause between each word to gather enough air, and even then each one came out wet with blood. "The… Old Man… taught… me."
A small spark of curiosity overtook the fury in Chereth's eye. "And what was that?"
"Al-" Another cough, this one so hard that blood filled Berun's nose and leaked out. "Always… watch… your back!"
Chereth whirled.
Next to the stairway stood Lewan, Berun's bow in hand, arrow pulled back to his cheek-the steel point aimed directly at Chererh. Lewan's fingers, grasping the bowstring, opened, and as the curve of the bow straightened, snapping the string forward with a sharp whisper of air, the runes etched into the bow glowed a brilliant green.
The druid raised his staff and spoke a single incantation.
Berun did not know if his life was failing so fast that his brain had already begun its long sleep, or perhaps it was simply the blessing of the Oak Father upon the bow, but in that instant he thought he saw a flash in the air as Chereth's magic failed him. The arrow flew straight and true, burying itself in the half-elf's chest. It struck with such force that it spun him around, and when he fell upon his hands and knees, he was facing Berun. By the time he gripped his staff and pushed himself to his feet, he was shaking like an old man with palsy — and Lewan had another arrow drawn and nocked. But only for a moment.
Chereth opened his mouth in a last, desperate attempt to call forth his magic, and the arrow struck him there, passing between his teeth. The steel point bored through his skull before the wood of the arrow stuck.
The old druid fell back onto the vine-covered roof, his legs kicked twice, and he died staring at the sky.
Chapter Forty-One
The bowstring was still vibrating when a great mound of vines and leaves erupted. Sauk rose to his full height, snapping branches and raking thorns down his skin as he freed himself. A few thick vines round his shoulders would not give, so he swiped at them with a dagger until the severed ends dangled behind him like some bizarre, thorny half-cloak. He spared Lewan and Talieth a quick glance, dismissed them, and fixed his gaze on Berun. He stomped toward the oak, and Lewan heard a growl growing in the half-orc's throat. "Lewan…" said Ulaan.
"Stay back," he told her, then took another arrow from his belt, laid it across the bow, pulled the arrow to his cheek, and aimed the steel point at Sauk. "Stop, Sauk! Stop where you are."
The half-orc's gaze flicked to Lewan. Sauk saw the threat and stopped. He turned to face Lewan and smiled. "You think you can take me with that twig tosser"-he spat blood onto the leaves — "before I get to you? You'll only get to loose one arrow before I reach you."
"I've been a hunter most of my life," said Lewan. "Once chance is all you ever get."
"Stop this! Both of you!"
Lewan heard movement behind him, and from the corner of his eve he saw Talieth step up beside him.
"Sauk," she said, "I know you. I know your code. You won't prey upon anyone weaker than you."
"This isn't about honor anymore," said Sauk. "This is about blood. Berun killed Taaki."
"No. His lizard did-and only after Taaki almost killed him. It was survival, Sauk. Life and death. You would have done no different in the same situation."
Sauk snarled, the growl building in his throat, blood running off his good tusk and the silver one. His grip tightened around the knife.
"I am truly sorry about Taaki," said Talieth. "But understand this. The only one on this tower stronger than you right now is me, and am telling you that if you take one more step toward Kheil with murder in your eyes, it will be the last step you ever take."
Talieth's voice sounded weak and strained, but Lewan heard the truth in her words. It was not the first time he'd been told that Sauk believed that killing those weaker than him was dishonorable. The bow, drawn and ready and aimed at Sauk, made Lewan a formidable foe. And though it took every ounce of will he had left, Lewan slackened the bow and lowered it-though he kept his fingers with a tight grip on the arrow.
Sauk ignored the gesture, keeping his eyes fixed on Talieth. Lewan noted that the half-orc gripped the knife so tightly that his entire arm trembled.
Sauk threw his head back and roared. Talieth took a half-step back and raised her hands, a spell already forming on her lips, but when Sauk lunged, it was behind him. He buried the knife in Chereth's chest. Lewan heard bones break like shattering stone. Sauk pulled the knife down, cutting through muscle and shattering the dead druid's ribcage. Lewan stared wide-eyed as Sauk tossed the knife away-with such force that it sailed over the edge of the tower-ripped open the half-elf's chest cavity, and tore out the heart with both hands. He held it in his fist, raised it over his head, and shouted something in his own tongue. The only word Lewan understood was the last — "Malar!" — then Sauk bit into the heart, tore out a chunk with his jaws, threw the rest away, and looked over his shoulder at Talieth. Fury filled his eyes, and great hurt, but Lewan could see thought there as well. Sauk the Assassin was returning, though Sauk the Predator was not entirely gone.
Talieth held her stance a moment longer, then relaxed. She arched one eyebrow and said to Sauk, "Are you done?"
Sauk chewed, drips of blood leaking out of the corner of his mouth as he considered. At last he looked down at Chereth's mutilated body, spat out the heart, and said, "He's done."
+++++
Lewan, Ulaan, Talieth, and Sauk stood before the oak, facing Berun. Although the druid's magic had left the vines, they still bound Berun to the tree. Only his head was completely free, and it hung limp. Lewan still held the arrow on the bowstring, and he kept an uneasy eye on Sauk, but the half-orc, while certainly far from calm, seemed to have control of his rage. Talieth had dismissed Sauk entirely, and she stood with her hands outstretched, seeming hesitant to touch Berun.
"Is he…?" said Talieth.
At the sound of her voice, Berun's eyelids fluttered and remained half open. He coughed, and a thick gout of dark blood sprayed onto Talieth's outstretched hand.
"Oh, Kheil-" she said, her voice breaking. But when she turned and looked at Lewan, her eyes were cold and hard as new steel. "Help me get him down. If we can find a healer-"
"No!" Berun croaked. The one word brought another fit of coughing, and he splattered them both in blood. Neither cared.
"I won't lose you again, Kheil," said Talieth, looking to Berun again. She held his face in her hands and lifted it so he could see her. "Chereth is dead. We can-"
"No," said Lewan.
"Silence!" She turned a look on Lewan that bordered on murder. "You will help me."
Lewan did not flinch or even resist. He held her gaze a moment, then looked to his master. Tears welled in his eyes, and he said, "He's beyond saving, Lady. Let him die upon the Oak. It's what he wants."