Honor-Bound [ Lore of Penrua: Book III ]

9

All that Uachi knew about the continent of Narr could have fit in a scrawl on the back of his hand. He had not benefited from an extensive schooling in his youth, and indeed it was not until he joined the rebellion that he came by a proper understanding of what an empire was. Now, older but no better traveled, he had never had the smallest inclination to go sight-seeing around the world. He had only been as far south as Tuamach, the southernmost city belonging to the Penruan Empire, a hub of trade that boasted a well-manned outpost of soldiers.

That was where he was going. He could get that far under the power of a lie. He was coming to realize that it was, after all, a lie that he intended to find Ealin and bring her to justice.

He would find her.

He would uncover what had driven her to do what she'd done.

And when he had unraveled her secrets? What then? He didn't know.

He knew there could be no path to forgiveness. Uachi was a man who had never been able to muster much mercy, and this betrayal had struck so deep at the core of his life and his loyalties that any future for Ealin in his life, or indeed in the Holy City, had ended the moment she'd run.

Ealin had broken his trust—he would not think of hearts. If she had done this thing, what did it mean? Would she languish in a cell? Would she be sentenced to die? Could he bear to see her kneeling before an executioner's sword, this woman he'd thought he'd known?

What alternative would there be? A swifter justice, perhaps. A dagger, a grave.

It was not Uachi's choice to make. As deeply as she'd wronged him, Ealin had wronged Matei and Mhera more. They should govern her fate.

Could he watch it all unravel?

For a marching army of Penruan soldiers, the journey from the Holy City in the northernmost reaches of Penrua to Tuamach would take nigh on two turnings of the moons. For Uachi and his men, who traveled by ship around the eastern coastline of Penrua instead, the journey took two to three weeks, depending on the season and how favorable the winds were.

They sailed past Ridorin's Isle, a bustling port of trade between the two countries which had fallen into chaos since the outbreak of war. They sailed past Jorgoran, a crumbling, ancient city just on the Penruan side of the border with Narr. When they made landfall at the port of Tuamach, Uachi had been through a cycle of restless fury and bottomless despair so many times that he was numb to anything but his purpose: to find Uarria. To find Ealin and bring her safely home before anyone else could get their hands on her, or before he could mete out a justice of his own.

Uachi stood at the end of the dock, watching as the soldiers with whom he had traveled unloaded and headed into the town, where they would take their leisure at the ale-houses and sleep on firm ground for the first time in weeks. He had had plenty of time to reflect on the journey south—not only about where Ealin might be going and what her intentions for Uarria were, but also about how he should approach pursuit of her.

He knew, from his own gut instincts as well as Mhera's vision, that Ealin could only be going in one direction: to the archmage.

And it had not escaped Uachi's notice that Uarria, seen from the archmage's perspective, would be a very interesting little girl. Not only was she Arcborn, as Uachi's brother had been before the archmage slaughtered him—presumably for his blood—but Uarria was the newest descendant from a powerful line of Arcborn mages, the daughter not only of the Blood-Bound Sovereigns but the scion of the line of the Blessed Sovereigns themselves.

She was the child of the Rebel King, the daughter of a Seer, and her blood was blessed. And this, more than anything else, was what scared Uachi.

Still...he had determined after much thought to go after Ealin alone. He'd be faster, subtler. He would be able to travel over any terrain, being experienced in traveling through forests as well as fields. He would avoid people's notice, as a regiment of armed men certainly would not, and he would be able to sneak over the Penrua-Narr border without nearly so much difficulty as a regiment of Penruan armed men would. The empire could not hope to send a search party over the Penrua-Narr border in the midst of brewing war.

"Captain?"

The greeting broke Uachi out of his troubled thoughts, and he looked at the young man who had saluted him.

"Yes," Uachi said. "What is it?"

"Lieutenant Saelna stands ready to make her report, sir, in your office at the garrison. She wishes to consult with you on the matter of defenses to the west of the border; it has been a most troublesome time since you were last here, sir."

"Very well. I'll go to her." Uachi bent and picked up a pack he had taken from the ship. It was a bag he had packed well in advance for the mission ahead. "Can you get me a horse, lad? I've still got sea legs, and I'd feel easier riding."

"Sir." The young man saluted again and then turned and hastened off onto the dock. There, a couple of horses that had been brought with the sailing soldiers from the Holy City were tied to a hitching post. Uachi trailed him, feeling foolish; had he not been so deep in his thoughts, he'd have managed himself.

The boy untethered a golden-colored beast; by the time he had quickly checked the horse's tack, Uachi had caught up.

"Thank you." Uachi swung himself up into the saddle. "I've just one stop to make, and then I will be on my way to Lieutenant Saelna. If you are not committed, lend a hand to the soldiers who are unloading the boat. It won't go unremarked."

"Thank you, sir." The boy saluted yet again. Well used by now to restraining his impatience with such niceties, Uachi did what he always did and ignored it. He tapped the horse's flanks with the heels of his boots, driving the beast into motion. With an inquisitive mrr, Farra trotted after him, her ears perked forward and her tail held straight up into the air.

Of course, Uachi had no intent of actually going to Saelna's office; rather, he hoped to slip out of the city of Tuamach without being noticed by anyone who knew him. He rode toward the heart of the city but turned his horse into an alleyway before he reached the main thoroughfare. There, he pulled up his hood, and then he headed to the southern gates of the city.

He was not quite sure where he was going, but he knew enough to begin the journey: south. He would go south into Narr, and he would try to uncover the whereabouts of the archmage.

The guards at the gate seemed to recognize him despite his hood, for they snapped into salutes, but they did not raise a question as he rode past them out the gates, on toward the border between Penrua and Narr. 

So our fearless ranger is setting off alone into the unknown. How is this going to work out for him, Dear Reader?

I suppose he isn't completely alone; he has a horse and his beloved giant cat, and what more do you need? 🥰