“Our departure?” echoed Dotil from behind me, she seeing naught of the urge within me to bare my teeth. “Does the male follow you, Jalav? Surely you cannot mean to allow him to follow you to the visiting place?”
“The male seems one who obeys naught save his own desires,” remarked Wedin, who now strode along beside me, to my right. “Should he refuse to take himself from the midst of Midanna doings, you will, of course, speak to him with swords. ”
“I cannot,” I replied, vexation strong within me, too well aware of Wedin’s dark eyes upon me. “The male has aided me too often, returned my life and freedom too often, for me now to take his life. Also has he sworn that he will never raise weapon to me, for once I kept him from the claws and teeth of the keren. It must be through Mida’s efforts that he rides elsewhere than upon my track, and surely will she see it so. She knows even better than we that I cannot lead a free male to the visiting place.”
“Am I, also, to be seen to?” came Chaldrin’s voice from my left, just as I reached the egress to the outer cavern. The male stood within the shadows there, one wide shoulder against the gray of the stone, massive arms folded negligently across his chest. Though a glance about showed Ilvin in the midst of hurrying across the cavern with the clear intention of joining my set, Chaldrin was already in place where my departure was impossible without his notice. I had thought the male too deep in his dispute with Ilvin to bedevil me further, yet had I once again been mistaken.
“Another?” said Dotil with vast disbelief, stepping forward to study a calmly amused Chaldrin. “Should this continue, war leader, our clans will believe themselves under attack by males at your arrival. Also will your numbers be greater than theirs.”
“I find little amusement in this state of affairs, warrior,” said I, the growl in my tone bringing a chuckle not only to Chaldrin but to Dotil and Wedin as well. “The why of my having been burdened by Mida with males without number is beyond me, yet do they surely move to her bidding. Come the time she plans for, the males will serve their purpose and then shall they be gone from beneath our feet. Should the effort not be beyond all those who so ardently wish to ride with me, let us now find mounts and at last be on our way.”
My annoyance was great as I took myself from the cavern room toward the entrance to the caves, so great that nearly did I forget that the kand were kept in a cavern to the opposite side of the entrance. I allowed the strong odor of kand to turn my steps in the proper direction, and then entered the long, close corridor which was the cavern of the mounts. Many kand were tied to either side of the torchlit stone area, each with fodder aplenty to keep it satisfied, and there, near to the front of the area, was the yellow and brown kan which I had ridden and left in the forests. It gave me pleasure to see the beast, and as Wedin and Dotil began the search for mounts of their own, I went to my kan and began to run my hands over him.
“The animal remains sound,” said Chaldrin from very near, clearly having followed after once again. “I, myself, fetched him from where you had left him, for I knew you would need him again. His track was easily followed through the forests, most especially with the signposts so thoughtfully left for us.”
“Signposts?” I asked, continuing to give the kan my attention. “Of what do you speak?”
“The carcasses of those who were once followers of the Oneness,” said Chaldrin, a chuckle again accompanying his words. “Your bow was well occupied during your feyd of travel, as was your dagger upon your arrival here. We observed the entrance of a man alone as we considered the best means of approach to this place, and saw that no sentry attempted to halt him. As he entered so did we, yet did he overlook the remains of the one meant to guard against us, as we did not. Should he have neglected to give you thanks for your effort, allow me to repair the omission.”
“Thanks for an effort which was undoubtedly merely adequate?” I asked, at last turning to look upon the male. “Had I had true skill, they would all of them have fallen to me, is this not so?”
“There are limits to the doings of even one with true skill,” returned the male, amused rather than abashed at mention of the litany he had so often infuriated me with in the Caverns of the Doomed. “Had I been beside you when you came to this place, considerably more of the dross would have fallen to us, yet alone—your efforts were adequate.”
I voiced a sound of disgust with the male, which brought further chuckling upon him, yet before I might take the matter further I detected the trace of a familiar odor. I sniffed, then sniffed again, then turned my head toward Chaldrin.
“What is that odor?” I asked, for some reason knowing the male would be familiar with it. “Much does it seem misplaced here—yet at the same time clearly fitting.”
“I am aware of no odor save that of kand,” replied Chaldrin, testing the air as I had. “From what direction does it come?”
“From there,” said I, nodding toward the far end of the cavern. With that did I begin to walk in that direction, and Chaldrin came behind me, continuing to test the air for that which I had spoken of. We had nearly passed the last of the kand when the male put a hand to my arm, halting our steps.
“Your senses are keen indeed, wench,” said he, looking toward the darkness at the far end of the cavern. “The odor you detected is one I am well familiar with, for the precincts in which I spent so long a time are well imbued with traces of it. It is a vapor called Sigurr’s Breath, and many of the unused caverns below and about the Caverns of the Doomed are filled with it. In slight traces such as here and in the Caverns, it appears to be harmless. In places where it holds full sway its presence is deadly, the power of it able to fell a man full grown at first breath, and thereafter take the life from him. I had not known it was to be found in any place other than beneath our city—and perhaps it is not.”
“What foolishness do you speak?” I asked, at last having recalled the odd odor from the time of my arrival at the Caverns of the Doomed. “How might this Sigurr’s Breath be only beneath your city, and at the same time be here?”
“The Caverns run a very great distance below the ground,” said Chaldrin, his eyes busily taking in all they might. “How far a distance none truly know, for many have been lost in an attempt to learn the truth. Those who have lived to return and speak of their attempts have told of vast caverns, each beyond another, the traversal of which took feyd in the doing. The greatest difficulty was in retracing their paths, for the twistings and turnings were so like one unto the other that those careless enough to make no sign marks of their passage quickly became lost. It seems likely that Sigurr’s city now stands in greater safety than before, due entirely to your having noted a familiar odor.”
“Never have I failed to note that males take great delight in speaking so that a warrior is unable to comprehend them,” said I, standing myself before the male so that he might see my annoyance. “How might Sigurr’s city find safety from my having detected an odor?”
Chaldrin’s broad face took on a smile of amusement. “As the followers of the Oneness chose these caverns in which to shelter and hide their presence,” said he, “it appears they meant to attack the city from below once they had gathered sufficient numbers. Likely the force which was met by the legions of the Sword was the one meant to accomplish the attack, yet there is little sense in considering the matter over and done with. Those of the city will need to block and guard their own entrances to the lower caverns, and then will the threat of attack from that direction be negated. Had you not noticed the odor, those in the city would continue to stand in jeopardy, therefore do they now stand instead in your debt. Why have you wound the leather of your life sign about the hilt of your dagger rather than hanging it about your neck?”