The musicians aft blew a fanfare on their coiled brass trumpets. Like the «sailors,» the «musicians» today were not slaves or servants, but picked warriors of Thambral's household. And the «musicians,» unfortunately, had not been picked for their musical ability. The fanfare sounded like an entire barnyard full of animals dying in agony. Blade cringed and shuddered at the noise. If he had not needed to maintain some ceremonial dignity, he would have clapped his hands over his ears.
The last of the barnyard finally died in peace, and the drummers took up the accompaniment. They were nearly as ragged, if less agonizing to listen to. Then King Thambral strode out on deck. His robes of state were brilliant green silk, so heavily encrusted with jewels and gold embroidery that Blade could hardly see the underlying color. What the robes might weigh Blade did not even want to imagine. But Thambral strode forward, as erect as if he had been wearing garments made of spiderwebs. He nodded to Blade, then stepped up to the gangplank and raised a hand in salute to Hurakun. Hurakun returned the salute. Thambral nodded to two of the disguised warriors, and they lifted him onto the gangplank. He took two slow steps forward. Blade turned, to look north again.
And this time he stopped in mid-turn. The big war galley he had noticed earlier was moving slowly out of its place in the Chiribuan line. As it did so, a gap of blue water showed. Through that gap were coming two low-slung boats, sails drum-tight with the north wind and oars pounding in a frantic beat. Both were black, the color of the House of the Serpent. But Blade recognized the type. They were the same as the temple boat that had launched the attack on the Lugsa.
For a moment Blade froze, then he spun completely around and began snapping orders. «Everybody-arm at once! Be ready to cut the lines and pull clear of the barge.» His tone of voice made any argument impossible. The musicians and sailors scurried to obey. Then Blade turned to shout to King Thambral, who stood in the middle of the gangplank, staring about him at the sudden uproar.
As Blade turned, several things happened in rapid succession. Prince Kenas noticed the sudden activity aboard the Gonsaran yacht and shouted, «Treachery! They have-«Princess Mirasa noticed the oncoming boats, and screamed, «Treachery! Piralu has-«Before either prince or princess could finish, there was a whistle and a rushing in the air. Then there was a splintering crash as a solid chunk of rock crashed down on the barge's deck.
It landed squarely on one of Hurakun's counselors, smashing him to the deck, a pulped and bloody mess. Then it bounced off the deck, rolled, and crashed into the railing of the barge just to the right of where King Hurakun was standing. The railing splintered. The king, who was holding on to it, staggered. Then his massive black ceremonial headdress overbalanced him, and he plunged head-first over the side. His heavy black robes of state dragged him down out of sight even before the fish could gather around him to tear the flesh from his bones.
Prince Ken as uttered a great cry, «Father!» Princess Mirasa screamed wordlessly, madly, her clear wits and poise gone for the moment. King Thambral froze in the middle of the gangplank, and all the warriors seemed paralyzed with surprise. Then a second stone crashed down on the barge, and the gangplank lurched and threatened to spill Thambral into the river after Hurakun.
The only person not paralyzed was Blade. He sailed up onto the gangplank as though he were on springs. Dropping his sword, he seized King Thambral around the waist, lifted him high, and threw him bodily back aboard the Gonsaran vessel. Two of the warriors aboard the yacht snapped out of the paralysis in time to cushion their king's fall. Then as he felt the gangplank twist again and start to fall, Blade leaped, sprawling down with a crash on the deck of the barge.
He was on his feet again in a moment. «Quickly, your Majesty!» he shouted at Kenas. «Get aboard the Gonsaran boat. Now!» Kenas nodded. The realization that he was now king seemed to be filling him with new strength. He sprang up onto the railing of the barge, and without a moment's hesitation or teetering leaped high across the water. Mirasa screamed again. Then Kenas crashed down on the deck of the Gonsaran yacht, making the planks groan and flattening half a dozen Gonsaran soldiers like bowling pins. Before Mirasa could scream once more, Blade had snatched her up like a doll and flung her after her husband. He plucked her out of the air.
Now Blade shouted across the water to the crew of the Gonsaran yacht. «Get Kenas and Mirasa out of here. Back water and get out of here. Now!» He saw nods among the warriors, and heard rattles and bangs from below as the rowers ran out the oars. Water began to foam white around the yacht's stern as the rowers began to back her away from the barge. Now Blade felt that he could turn to meet the enemy.
The two cult boats were less than fifty yards away now, and coming on without slowing. On their bows he could make out the frames of the two catapults that had hurled the stones. Their decks were crowded with armed men. As Blade watched, some of these pulled on the white bat-masks of the Death-Vowed of Ayocan. Blade ran quickly across the now deserted deck of the barge. He scrambled aboard the Chiribuan galley just as it too backed water and pulled clear of the barge.
He leaped down among the black-clad Chiribuan warriors just as another stone dropped between the barge and the yacht. Water splashed down on the yacht's deck. Blade saw some of the warriors cringe. He sprang onto the yacht's quarterdeck and shouted, «Hold there, warriors of Chiribu! Are you going to let King Hurakun die unavenged? It is in your hands. And remember-those who serve Ayocan are only men! They can die like men, whether it pleases Ayocan or not! And we shall see that they do die!» The warriors straightened and began to shout and cheer. Then the cheers and shouts were drowned out by a tremendous crash as the first of the temple boats rammed the galley in the stern. The howls of the Death-Vowed rose from the temple boat's deck.
But to get aboard the galley they had to pass over its quarterdeck, and to pass over the quarterdeck they had to pass Blade. They found this hard to do. The Death-Vowed swarmed and leaped in a blind frenzy. Some of them fell into the river. Blade stood his ground, took his time, and picked his victims out of the swarm with almost surgical precision. His axe and sword whistled and struck. More bodies living and dead fell down into the river. The water about the galley's stern boiled white and red.
Blade's whirling sword and axe held off the Death-Vowed for only a minute or so. But that was long enough for other warriors aboard the yacht to rally and join him. Together they met the rush of Holy Warriors swarming aboard to join the Death-Vowed. A savage battle with no holds barred and no quarter given or asked churned back and forth along the deck of the yacht. The smell of blood and sweat, the clang of axes and sword, hideous screams from a dozen different throats rose thickly about Blade.
There was a brief moment when the fighting ebbed away from him and he was able to look beyond the galley's deck. The Gonsaran yacht was thrashing toward its own fleet line, with the other temple boat hard after it. The temple boat's deck was crowded with bat-masks. On the stern of the yacht Blade could see Prince-now King-Kenas standing tall, cursing and bellowing at the Ayocani. Several small galleys were slipping out of the Gonsaran line, toward the fleeing yacht, to cover its retreat.