"Boreal Moon - 02 - Ironcrown Moon" - читать интересную книгу автора (May Julian)

Scarth frowned. УWell, thereТs the ring I thought might be a Weather-maker, and the icicle or carrot or whatever it is.Ф
Yes, its name is Ice-Master. And the third?
УA little wand with phases of the moon carved on it.Ф
FelmarТs eyes went wide with shock and he gave a loud gasp. Just a simple rod, with a hole at one end? And phases of the moon, you say?
УYesЕ Look, let me take them out. You can see for yourself.Ф He opened his pouch and proffered the sigils in the palm of his hand.
But Felmar had closed his eyes, as if in ecstatic contemplation.
A Destroyer! ThatТs what it is. One of the greatest of the Great Stones. The Lights slew my poor mother for using it contrary to their wishes. But if it were neutralized by the Potency, thereТd be no danger at all to the user.
УPel, I donТt know what youТre saying. WhatТs a Destroyer?Ф
WeТll have to keep the sigils safe until I can come for them. I donТt suppose the book matters anymore, since I donТt need it for the activation, but we might as well include that, too. Take one of the empty saddlebags from the dead mule, old friend. Put the book and the stones inside, strap it up tightly, and follow me.
It was only a dream, so Scarth obeyed without argument. He was curious to see what would happen next. Felmar beckoned him to follow, circled around the little fire and the dead animal, then set out uphill, straight for the tall opening in the rock. He peered into the fissure, then put a finger to his lips.
Come on. But be very, very quiet! ThereТs a nice dry ledge, head high on the right and only a couple of ells from the entrance. Put the saddlebag there.
Scarth held back. УBe careful! What if it wakes up and smells us? ItТs a monstrous thing! Nearly six feet tall at the shoulder!Ф
Listen. IТve found a fine place for us to hide out. Good food and drink, comfortable beds for as long as we want them, and no one can scry us there. YouТll love it. But we donТt dare bring the sigils and book. WeТve got to put them in a safe place and pick them up later, when the hue and cry has died down. Understand?
УAll right.Ф
Scarth could smell decaying flesh inside the den even before he entered. The bones underfoot and the rough rocky floor had smears of fresh blood. Alert for the slightest sound from the inky depths, he pushed past Felmar and set the leather bag on the high ledge. Felmar was right: this was a perfect place to hide it. No one who looked casually inside the hole would catch sight of the bag, and it was surely safe from scrying.
УThatТs that.Ф He turned about, ready to leaveЧand saw that Felmar was gone. Quickly, he strode towards the fissureТs mouth and looked outside, but there was no trace of his friend.
Wake up. Both of you.
УPel?ЕФ He opened his eyes, felt his knees buckling, caught his breath in stark terror at the strange hooting snuffle that came from the darkness behind him. Something stepped on a dry bone and crushed it. He heard a low growl, risked a fearful glance, and saw beady black eyes and lips drawn back in a snarl from enormous ivory teeth.
УItТs a dream!Ф Scarth Saltbeck screamed at the top of his lungs. But he had been sleepwalkingЕ
He stumbled down the slope, the giant brown bear caught him easily before he reached the shelter of the tall rocks, and dragged him back to its den.
==========
The exhausted men-at-arms, the knights, the windvoices, and their dauntless leader Lord Olvan straggled back down the mountain path even before daylight had begun to fade, intending to make a safe camp on the far side of the great rockfall, where theyТd left their mounts and supplies before pursuing their quarry on foot.
Kilian and his companions watched the retreat through the spell of couverture disguising the entrance to their cave. When the last of the hunters had disappeared, he extinguished the magic.
УTheyТll be back tomorrow,Ф Garon said. УThere are game trails up there going in different directions. The windsearchers canТt have explored them all. Do you want to move on? The weatherТs fine, thereТll be a nearly full moon tonight, and weТve had a good rest. We might almost reach the divide by dawn tomorrow. I donТt think theyТd dare follow us much further than that. These are castle garrison troops, not crack mountaineers like the ones on duty at Beorbrook Hold. A lot of them are looking over their shoulders, afraid that demons might be stalking them.Ф
Kilian thought about it. УI must try to windspeak Felmar and Scarth again. ThereТs a useful high point on the ridge above the cave. I can reach it if I go up this ravine. Let me try to scry our friends from there. Should I fail in that, IТll extinguish their cover spell and bespeak them. If I still have no luck, weТll move on without them.Ф
Garon inclined his head. УAs you wish, my lord. However, for your own safety, I insist on accompanying you on the climb up to the ridge.Ф
УVery well.Ф
The two of them left the cave together. Niavar and Cleaton came out to stretch their legs and relieve themselves.
УWicked hike it was, getting here,Ф Niavar observed. УMaybe not so tiring for you, with your long legs, but IТm not keen to press on, I can tell you.Ф
УWeТll make young Garon carry you pickaback,Ф Cleaton said with an evil grin. УGive him less breath to talk down to us, the conceited gowk. Just because heТs highland-born, he thinks the sun shines from his bum.Ф
Niavar shrugged. УThe lad knows weТd be helpless up here without himЧ and heТs right. Possess your soul in patience, Clete. When weТve safely reached SomarusТs camp, itТll be different. Lord Kilian wonТt let a jumped-up high-lander lord it over two experienced administrators like you and me.Ф
They sat without speaking for a time. Then Cleaton said, УI think we made a great mistake not blasting Butterball to smuts back at the rockslide.Ф
УHow so?Ф
УHe wonТt be content telling the kingТs men about our failed ambush. Mark my words, Var, heТll spill his guts of everything he knows. Felmar and Scarth and the treasure. WaringlowТs complicity. Even KilianТs intention to ally with Beynor and Somarus.Ф
УWell, how bad can that be for us? Who cares if the new Father Abbas gets the chop? And the sigils and books were only a kind of bribe for Beynor, werenТt they? I mean, itТd be a fine thing for Kilian and the Mosslander to have a few active moonstone sigils at their commandЧbut if the things are lost, our master wonТt give up on his great scheme. HeТll change tactics, thatТs all. He implied that Beynor has a plan to put Somarus on the throne of Didion sooner rather than later. All kinds of interesting opportunities might present themselves to clever magickers if a hothead king reigns in the barbarous northland.Ф
Cleaton gave a gloomy grunt. УInteresting. A nice word. I suppose weТre talking war with the Sovereignty.Ф
УWars provide interesting opportunities, too,Ф said Niavar.
They fell silent again, then by mutual consent unrolled the blankets of their bedrolls, intending to catch a few winks of sleep before Kilian and Garon returned.
==========
УSo you think both Felmar and Scarth are dead, my lord?Ф Garon asked. УAnd the treasureТs gone?Ф
Kilian wiped perspiration from his brow. He sat on the summit of a crag, waiting for his heart to slow after the strenuous effort needed for the generalized call on the wind. His windsearch of the desolate border region where the moor met the mountains had eventually revealed the mutilated body of a mule and a bloody trail leading to an animal den. A manТs boot and a dead campfire with uncooked pieces of meat on a stick were the only other clues.
There had been no need for him to obliterate the cover spell shielding Fel-mar and Scarth. It no longer existed anywhere within the range of his windtalent. His attempt to bespeak the Brothers using their private password had failed. So had the only remaining option, an open windcall that might have been perceived by anyone. All he had done was call the menТs names. The timbre of his windspeech was sufficient to convey the urgency of his cry.
But there had been no answer.
УYes, I believe they are dead,Ф Kilian replied. УAnd what you have so blithely referred to as Сthe treasureТ is lost to us. ItТs a severe disappointment but by no means an insurmountable disaster. Other magical resources are available to meЧand to those who are loyal to meЧin Didion.Ф
УIТm happy to hear it, my lord. Shall we go back to the others? If weТre to set out again tonight, we wonТt want to waste time.Ф
Going down the steep ridge was harder than the ascent. But even as Kilian concentrated on placing his hands and feet as Garon directed, a part of his mind was occupied by more urgent thoughts. HeТd spoken confidently to the young Brother, minimizing the effect of the troveТs loss on their future. But the reality of the situation was more ominousЧespecially as it pertained to KilianТs alliance with Beynor. The Mossland sorcerer cared only about the Trove of Darasilo. Once he learned that the large cache of moonstones had been lost, he was bound to view Kilian as an ally of questionable value.
It was even possible that Beynor already knew about the fate of Felmar, Scarth, and the trove. Why else would he have held off bespeaking Kilian in his dreams? BeynorТs tremendous natural talent might have been able to pierce the new cover spell, in which case he had probably windwatched the lot of them ever since he arrived on High Blenholme Island.
I may be in serious trouble, the alchymist thought. However, there was a small ray of hopeЕ or perhaps even two rays!
Firstly, Beynor still lay under the LightsТ curse, which prevented him from utilizing sigil magic. Nevertheless he coveted his sisterТs stones and might also have designs on stones possessed by the Salka. Perhaps he might be foolish enough to think he could use Kilian as a sigil-wielding deputy, as he had once used the wizard-assassin Iscannon.
The second hopeful possibility lay in the other principal player in their Didionite adventure. Prince Somarus Mallburn was a mature warrior who was justifiably wary of Beynor. He had been present at the young Conjure-KingТs unforgettably calamitous coronation, where Ullanoth had made her brother the laughingstock of the entire island. The prince would also remember BeynorТs magical failures that had culminated in ConrigТs victory over Didion at sea. So wouldnТt the new King of Didion welcome an adviser who was intimately acquainted with the minds of both Beynor and Conrig? The gold intended as a bribe for Somarus was gone, alas, left behind with his horseЧ except for the small amount Kilian had been able to secrete about his person. But he still had his wits and his talent. TheyТd have to serve.