one
direction, the north. That’s the front. So the back is the inland or
the south. He obviously means sabotage. He means Tenaxos and his
cronies.”
“The one who thinks his sword will shatter Anaxantis’s? The one
he doesn’t fear?”
Emelasuntha shrugged.
“Not the foggiest. However, we’ll find out. Please, read the next
two sentences out loud for me will you.”
She handed over the parchment and closed her eyes.
“I dread the one who comes under cover of the night, when it is
dark and everything appears black. Shields nor armor will protect
me then, I fear.”
“Again, please, but slower.”
Sobrathi read the sentences again and looked at her friend, who
still sat with her eyes closed. After a few minutes a broad smile
appeared on the face of the queen.
“Did you get it? What does he mean?”
Again, Emelasuntha laughed out loud.
“He means what he says. Literally.”
98
Andrew Ashling
“Stop teasing me and tell me already.”
“Didn’t it occur to you that the sentences sounded a bit...
contrived, swollen even? ‘The night, when it is dark and everything
appears black.’ Isn’t it a bit superfluous to mention that in the night
it is dark? Isn’t it even more unnecessary to add that when it is night
and thus dark, everything appears black?”
“Now that you mention it...”
“The next sentence is not exactly incorrect, but it sounds a bit
pompous, wouldn’t you say? ‘Shields nor armor will protect me then,
I fear.’ You know, his old teacher would write in red ink ‘Suggestion:
No shield nor armor’ or something to that effect next to it, the Great
Mother bless his grammatically correct, parchment heart. Anaxantis
was a good student and he knows better. He has to mean something
by it.”
“Well?” Sobrathi insisted impatiently.
“But it is staring you in the face,” the queen chortled. “It almost
literally jumps off the page.”
“You’re driving me crazy, you know,” Sobrathi said, beginning to
lose her patience.
“All right,” Emelasuntha said, giving in, but still laughing. “The
sentences seem contorted because they are. And they are because he
wanted two words next to each other. You almost don’t see it because
they are separated by a period, but—”
“Black Shields,” Sobrathi exclaimed. “Blah blah blah appears
black. Shields nor armor blah blah blah I fear. He fears the enemy
coming from behind, his father, will send the Black Shields to the
Northern Marches and that they will come under cover.”
“Very good. Very, very good, Sobrathi.” The queen smiled. “And he
wants to hear from us soon. He wants to. know as soon as possible
Bonds of Fear
99
if Tenaxos is planning to send the Black Shields to the Northern
Marches.”
Sobrathi whistled, and if it sounded exactly like the shrill sound
the Tektiranga regularly produced, that was because he had taught
it to her.
“Wasn’t there something very fishy going on, the last time the
Mukthars attacked?” she asked.
“Fishy? Two weeks old, lying in the sun and rotting fish kind of
fishy, you mean. It stank to high heaven. The Tribe wasn’t as well
implanted then as it is now, you’ll remember, and I was still finding
my bearings. Still, we found out that for some reason or other
Tenaxos didn’t want to confront the barbarians. The Goddesses may
know why. Anyway, what we do know is that he sent a special royal
envoy to the then lord governor, a count or duke or something, and
made him abort all action against the Mukthars.”
“Whatever for?”
“As I said, I’ve no idea. At the time it didn’t seem too important.
What was it after all? Nothing more than a border skirmish. What we
did find out however is that he sent a captain of the Black Shields.”
“Just a captain?”
“Just a captain? Captain is the highest grade in the Black
Shields. A captain of the Black Shields outranks a general, even a
commander-general, of the regular army any
direction, the north. That’s the front. So the back is the inland or
the south. He obviously means sabotage. He means Tenaxos and his
cronies.”
“The one who thinks his sword will shatter Anaxantis’s? The one
he doesn’t fear?”
Emelasuntha shrugged.
“Not the foggiest. However, we’ll find out. Please, read the next
two sentences out loud for me will you.”
She handed over the parchment and closed her eyes.
“I dread the one who comes under cover of the night, when it is
dark and everything appears black. Shields nor armor will protect
me then, I fear.”
“Again, please, but slower.”
Sobrathi read the sentences again and looked at her friend, who
still sat with her eyes closed. After a few minutes a broad smile
appeared on the face of the queen.
“Did you get it? What does he mean?”
Again, Emelasuntha laughed out loud.
“He means what he says. Literally.”
98
Andrew Ashling
“Stop teasing me and tell me already.”
“Didn’t it occur to you that the sentences sounded a bit...
contrived, swollen even? ‘The night, when it is dark and everything
appears black.’ Isn’t it a bit superfluous to mention that in the night
it is dark? Isn’t it even more unnecessary to add that when it is night
and thus dark, everything appears black?”
“Now that you mention it...”
“The next sentence is not exactly incorrect, but it sounds a bit
pompous, wouldn’t you say? ‘Shields nor armor will protect me then,
I fear.’ You know, his old teacher would write in red ink ‘Suggestion:
No shield nor armor’ or something to that effect next to it, the Great
Mother bless his grammatically correct, parchment heart. Anaxantis
was a good student and he knows better. He has to mean something
by it.”
“Well?” Sobrathi insisted impatiently.
“But it is staring you in the face,” the queen chortled. “It almost
literally jumps off the page.”
“You’re driving me crazy, you know,” Sobrathi said, beginning to
lose her patience.
“All right,” Emelasuntha said, giving in, but still laughing. “The
sentences seem contorted because they are. And they are because he
wanted two words next to each other. You almost don’t see it because
they are separated by a period, but—”
“Black Shields,” Sobrathi exclaimed. “Blah blah blah appears
black. Shields nor armor blah blah blah I fear. He fears the enemy
coming from behind, his father, will send the Black Shields to the
Northern Marches and that they will come under cover.”
“Very good. Very, very good, Sobrathi.” The queen smiled. “And he
wants to hear from us soon. He wants to. know as soon as possible
Bonds of Fear
99
if Tenaxos is planning to send the Black Shields to the Northern
Marches.”
Sobrathi whistled, and if it sounded exactly like the shrill sound
the Tektiranga regularly produced, that was because he had taught
it to her.
“Wasn’t there something very fishy going on, the last time the
Mukthars attacked?” she asked.
“Fishy? Two weeks old, lying in the sun and rotting fish kind of
fishy, you mean. It stank to high heaven. The Tribe wasn’t as well
implanted then as it is now, you’ll remember, and I was still finding
my bearings. Still, we found out that for some reason or other
Tenaxos didn’t want to confront the barbarians. The Goddesses may
know why. Anyway, what we do know is that he sent a special royal
envoy to the then lord governor, a count or duke or something, and
made him abort all action against the Mukthars.”
“Whatever for?”
“As I said, I’ve no idea. At the time it didn’t seem too important.
What was it after all? Nothing more than a border skirmish. What we
did find out however is that he sent a captain of the Black Shields.”
“Just a captain?”
“Just a captain? Captain is the highest grade in the Black
Shields. A captain of the Black Shields outranks a general, even a
commander-general, of the regular army any
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