this?’ roared the lead rider, a broad man with a fleshy face and thin mutton-chop whiskers, as he advanced on Lynx. ‘Are you mad, sir?’
‘Nope,’ Lynx replied as Teshen barked an order for the company to halt and the call was taken up down the line.
A few had already stopped, watching in astonishment as Lynx carefully withdrew the mage-gun but kept it levelled at the last knight. He was a young man, clean-cut and handsome with sandy-blond hair – the very epitome of the noble warriors the Knights-Charnel made themselves out to be. Other than the naked fear on his face, that was.
‘What the name o’ pissing dark is goin’ on back here?’ Anatin roared, spurring his horse forward from the front of the column.
Lynx waited for the man to catch up, keeping his eyes on the knights but also trying to see past them to the young woman. There was fear on her face too, but as one of the nervous horses fidgeted he saw he was right. Her hands were bound to the saddle.
‘Lynx, what’re you doing?’ Anatin demanded, reining in beside him.
‘I want to talk to the young lady.’
‘Is that it?’ the leader of the knights said. ‘You’re from So Han, aren’t you? Is this some honour thing? I’ve seen how your lot treat your women folk and I couldn’t give a shit about a broken nation’s honour. She doesn’t belong to you. Your laws got changed, remember?’
‘That much I know,’ Lynx replied in a calm voice. ‘Still want to talk to her.’
‘Get on your way, mercenary,’ the knight said, voice thick with contempt now, ‘and we’ll forget about all this. You, you’re in command here?’
‘I am,’ Anatin replied stiffly.
‘Well, I’ve marked your badge. Do you really want to make an enemy of the Knights-Charnel?’
‘That I don’t. Lynx, get the fuck back to the column.’
‘Sorry, chief, but first I got to ask this girl something.’
Anatin swore loudly and drew his mage-pistol. Lynx could see him from the corner of his eye. The gun wasn’t exactly pointed at Lynx’s head, but it’d take just a twitch to put a shot right through his skull. ‘You forgotten the whole idea of taking orders?’
‘No, sir, but the girl asked for help.’
‘So?’
‘So I want to know why. She didn’t call out for you all to hear, she spoke in Hanese. Now my people ain’t exactly friendly or charitable, so that makes me wonder what she reckons I’ve got going for me that the rest of you don’t.’
Before anyone could reply the young woman blurted out, ‘I’m a mage!’
There was a moment of silence, broken only by the faint patter of rain.
‘And there we have it,’ Lynx said eventually. ‘She’s a mage. And So Han’s got little going for it, but it’s the one place round here where mages don’t get rounded up by Knights to work as slaves in their ammunition factories. Mages got respect there, even the women, so my guess is she knew I wouldn’t have grown up looking the other way when a slave party rode past.’
‘She’s a criminal,’ the leader of the Knights snapped, ‘and we’re taking her to justice. It’s none of your business, mercenary, and it’s time for you to step back.’ He paused. ‘Your name is Lynx?’
‘It is.’
The knight’s voice took on an even haughtier, aristocratic tone as he drew himself up in his saddle. ‘Well,
Master
Lynx. My name is Commander Ntois. You’re a long way from home and I urge you to ask yourself how loyal your fellows are to a man old enough to be a veteran of the war. Your captain there appears to grasp what it means to threaten a man of my rank, or indeed any other ranked man of the Knights-Charnel.’
‘Prove it,’ Lynx broke in, nodding towards the woman. ‘If she’s no mage, free her hands and give her something to charge.’
‘I’ll do no such thing. She’s a criminal!’
‘Why? Even a mage wouldn’t be able to kill all of you and make her escape.’
‘My patience is at an end, Master Lynx.’
The mercenary turned
‘Nope,’ Lynx replied as Teshen barked an order for the company to halt and the call was taken up down the line.
A few had already stopped, watching in astonishment as Lynx carefully withdrew the mage-gun but kept it levelled at the last knight. He was a young man, clean-cut and handsome with sandy-blond hair – the very epitome of the noble warriors the Knights-Charnel made themselves out to be. Other than the naked fear on his face, that was.
‘What the name o’ pissing dark is goin’ on back here?’ Anatin roared, spurring his horse forward from the front of the column.
Lynx waited for the man to catch up, keeping his eyes on the knights but also trying to see past them to the young woman. There was fear on her face too, but as one of the nervous horses fidgeted he saw he was right. Her hands were bound to the saddle.
‘Lynx, what’re you doing?’ Anatin demanded, reining in beside him.
‘I want to talk to the young lady.’
‘Is that it?’ the leader of the knights said. ‘You’re from So Han, aren’t you? Is this some honour thing? I’ve seen how your lot treat your women folk and I couldn’t give a shit about a broken nation’s honour. She doesn’t belong to you. Your laws got changed, remember?’
‘That much I know,’ Lynx replied in a calm voice. ‘Still want to talk to her.’
‘Get on your way, mercenary,’ the knight said, voice thick with contempt now, ‘and we’ll forget about all this. You, you’re in command here?’
‘I am,’ Anatin replied stiffly.
‘Well, I’ve marked your badge. Do you really want to make an enemy of the Knights-Charnel?’
‘That I don’t. Lynx, get the fuck back to the column.’
‘Sorry, chief, but first I got to ask this girl something.’
Anatin swore loudly and drew his mage-pistol. Lynx could see him from the corner of his eye. The gun wasn’t exactly pointed at Lynx’s head, but it’d take just a twitch to put a shot right through his skull. ‘You forgotten the whole idea of taking orders?’
‘No, sir, but the girl asked for help.’
‘So?’
‘So I want to know why. She didn’t call out for you all to hear, she spoke in Hanese. Now my people ain’t exactly friendly or charitable, so that makes me wonder what she reckons I’ve got going for me that the rest of you don’t.’
Before anyone could reply the young woman blurted out, ‘I’m a mage!’
There was a moment of silence, broken only by the faint patter of rain.
‘And there we have it,’ Lynx said eventually. ‘She’s a mage. And So Han’s got little going for it, but it’s the one place round here where mages don’t get rounded up by Knights to work as slaves in their ammunition factories. Mages got respect there, even the women, so my guess is she knew I wouldn’t have grown up looking the other way when a slave party rode past.’
‘She’s a criminal,’ the leader of the Knights snapped, ‘and we’re taking her to justice. It’s none of your business, mercenary, and it’s time for you to step back.’ He paused. ‘Your name is Lynx?’
‘It is.’
The knight’s voice took on an even haughtier, aristocratic tone as he drew himself up in his saddle. ‘Well,
Master
Lynx. My name is Commander Ntois. You’re a long way from home and I urge you to ask yourself how loyal your fellows are to a man old enough to be a veteran of the war. Your captain there appears to grasp what it means to threaten a man of my rank, or indeed any other ranked man of the Knights-Charnel.’
‘Prove it,’ Lynx broke in, nodding towards the woman. ‘If she’s no mage, free her hands and give her something to charge.’
‘I’ll do no such thing. She’s a criminal!’
‘Why? Even a mage wouldn’t be able to kill all of you and make her escape.’
‘My patience is at an end, Master Lynx.’
The mercenary turned