CHAPTER THIRTY

 

 

That night they made camp late, just as dusk was falling. Normally they would have done so at least an hour earlier, but Theo had insisted on putting as much distance between them and the skaven stronghold as possible before resting for the night. This made sense, but Rudi suspected that he was just as eager to get close to their destination so he could turn Fritz in for the bounty.

Rudi’s mind was reeling. He busied himself with the routine of settling for the night, and tried to look as casual as possible. Bruno glanced at him oddly a couple of times, but he hoped that was simply a result of their astonishing conversation earlier in the day. Boden, Conrad and Theo didn’t seem to be treating him any differently, so he supposed he was concealing his feelings well enough. He stowed his new pack where he could grab it in a hurry if he needed to, and started to collect firewood from the fringes of the copse where they’d made camp.

“Here you are.” He dropped a bundle of sticks in front of Hanna, grateful for the excuse to talk to her.

“Thank you.” She extended a hand to the small pile of kindling she’d already prepared, and flashed it into flame. Rudi watched Fritz flinch and mutter prayers to Sigmar as he had done every time he’d seen the girl use her abilities. He still seemed more frightened of Hanna than the rest of them put together, and Rudi hoped he would be able to overcome it when they made their break.

“This idea of yours…” he began quietly then checked himself as Bruno trotted up with another bundle of wood.

“That should do,” Hanna said brightly, favouring the youth with a smile. She picked up the company’s stewpot and hung it over the flames. “Anyone got some water?”

“Right here, lass.” Theo threw her a half-full canteen, which she emptied into the cauldron. Then she started preparing a stew with the rabbits Rudi had snared the previous night. Bodun sniffed disappointedly.

“We’ve still got plenty of pork,” he pointed out hopefully. Hanna smiled at him.

“We’ve already cooked it, so it’ll keep another day or two. But these coneys are still fresh.”

“Aye, I suppose so.” The dwarf nodded reluctantly, conceding the logic.

“Besides,” Rudi added, holding a freshly skinned rabbit corpse up to spill its guts into the fire, “you’ll be able to afford some ale to go with it this time tomorrow.”

“True.” Bodun seemed a great deal happier as he considered the prospect. “That’ll make it all the more sweet.”

“A drink, for Sigmar’s sake.” Alwyn appeared from nowhere, with an abruptness Rudi was beginning to get used to. She swayed on her feet. Conrad hurried forward to support her. He glared at Theo.

“I told you it would be too much for her!”

“What’s the matter?” Rudi handed her the bottle of rough spirits he’d found in Fritz’s pack. He’d sniffed cautiously at it the first night, when he went through the contents to see what was worth keeping or bartering, but he hadn’t dared take a sip at it. Alwyn took it gratefully, and downed several swallows. Her face was pale, and her nose was bleeding.

“Too many jumps. Too fast.” She coughed, spraying a mouthful of the liquid at the fire, which flared momentarily with a bluish flame. Then she wiped the blood away with the back of her hand. “I’ll be all right.” She smiled wanly at Hanna. “That’s something you’ll learn about magic soon enough. Push it too hard and it’ll push right back.”

“I hope you think this was worth it,” Conrad snapped at Theo. The mercenary captain nodded thoughtfully.

“That depends. Did you find them?”

“Right where they said they’d be.” Alwyn took another pull at the bottle then handed it back to Rudi with obvious reluctance. “Thanks. I owe you one.”

“And?” Theo asked, apparently only partially satisfied with her answer.

“And they’ll have our money.” Alwyn paused. “There was another man there this time. The captain did all the talking again, but I’d bet my grandmother he was really in charge.”

“Who was he?” Bruno asked. The sorceress shrugged.

“No idea. But I wouldn’t want to get on the wrong side of him, that’s for sure.” Rudi fought the impulse to glance across at Hanna. It had to be Gerhard.

“Thanks,” Theo said. Conrad stared at him again, his expression still hard.

“Satisfied?” he asked. Theo nodded again.

“It confirms what we thought,” he said. “There’s more to this one than meets the eye.” He glanced reflectively at Fritz.

“Who cares?” Bruno asked. “We’re getting paid, aren’t we?”

“Oh yes.” Theo nodded. “But just to make sure, I think we should double the guard on our quarry tonight. If there’s something we’re not being told…”

“Agreed,” Conrad said. His expression softened, and he led his wife solicitously over to their bedroll. Rudi felt as though he’d been punched in the stomach.

 

Try as he might, Rudi was unable to think of a single strategy. It would have been hard enough spiriting Fritz away from under the nose of whoever would normally have been left on watch, but if two of them were going to be on guard the whole night it looked as though they were sunk. He began to entertain the idea of slipping away on his own; he was sure he could move stealthily enough to evade them in the darkness, and no doubt Hanna would be able to look after herself well enough…

He rejected the idea impatiently. He’d made a promise to her, and to Fritz, and he was honour-bound to go through with it. There must be a way, somehow…

“Here you are, it’s piping hot.” Hanna appeared in front of him with a bowl of stew. He sniffed at the appetising aroma, suddenly aware of how hungry he was. The faint scent of herbs overlaid the richer smell of the cooking meat. She lowered her voice as she bent to hand him the bowl. “Don’t eat it. Just pretend.” Before he could react she’d turned away.

Confused, Rudi did as he’d been told. The effort of stopping the spoon just short of his mouth was agonising. The others were plying their spoons with evident enthusiasm. Even Bodun, who had finished first, called for more.

“There’s plenty,” Hanna assured him, taking a bowl over to Alwyn. “Here. This’ll make you feel better.”

“Thank you.” The sorceress was shivering as though she had the ague, and she took the food gratefully. “It smells great.”

“You’ll make someone a wonderful wife,” Theo pointed out, and Bruno flushed to everyone’s amusement. While they were laughing, their eyes fixed on the youth, Rudi tipped the contents of his bowl quietly onto the ground.

“I’ll take some more too, if it’s there,” Conrad said. Hanna refilled his bowl, before going round the campfire to ensure everyone else had a second helping. Theo pretended that Bruno was getting a larger portion than the rest of them, and Bodun and Conrad joined in with accusations of favouritism. By now the youth was blushing furiously and smiling with more genuine warmth than Rudi had seen since they’d met.

“He’s a growing boy,” Hanna said, eliciting a roar of laughter far greater than the feeble jest deserved. He hadn’t seen them like this since the night at the inn, when they’d all been drunk together.

“I’m going to sleep,” Alwyn said. “I’m all in.” She yawned loudly, and stretched out on the bedroll.

“Careful, sweetheart. It’s catching.” Conrad yawned too.

“I’ll take the first watch,” Theo said. “Me and Bruno…” He glanced at the youth, who was stretched out on the grass snoring quietly. “I don’t know, youngsters today, no stamina. Me and Bodun then.”

“Right with you, boss.” The dwarf yawned. His jaw cracked like a dead branch under an incautious heel. “Just need to, you know, rest my eyes a moment…” Then he toppled over sideways.

“What the…” Theo stumbled to his feet. His hand reached for the hilt of his sword, which he’d almost drawn when his knees buckled. He sprawled face down in the dirt.

“What did you do to them?” Fritz asked, shrill with panic. He began worming his way backwards as Hanna approached him, with Theo’s pack dangling from her hand.

“Nothing permanent,” she said. “Just the right combination of herbs in the stew.”

“She’s a healer, remember?” Rudi said, masking his own surprise with a show of scorn. He began to rummage through the provisions. “Anything we can eat safely? We’ve got a lot of walking to do.”

“Anything but the stew,” Hanna confirmed, tipping the captain’s possessions out on the ground, and swooping down to recover the key to Fritz’s fetters. “Hold still, you idiot.”

“This’ll do.” Rudi gathered a bagful of food together, and threw Fritz a lump of the pork. “Here, I suppose that’s yours technically anyway.”

“So’s the pack,” Fritz said, biting into the meat eagerly. The last few days he’d had to make do with whatever scraps were left after the adventurers had finished their meals… and Bodun never left much.

“Not anymore.” Rudi shouldered the pack he’d looted from the lad which was now stuffed with his new possessions. “Unless you want to fight me for it.”

“This one’s better anyway,” Fritz said, picking up Theo’s, backing down with as much bravado as he could.

“When you’ve quite finished being masculine with each other…” Hanna interrupted, the old Kohlstadt tone had edged back into her voice for the first time in days. Rudi nodded.

“You’re right, we haven’t any time to waste.” He buckled up his sword belt and was vaguely surprised at how natural it was beginning to feel. Then he turned to Fritz. “Find a weapon. Something you know how to use.”

“This’ll do fine.” The lad obeyed with surprising speed, going straight for the spear he’d stolen when he deserted. Rudi was taken aback for a moment, until he realised the simpleton had spent his entire life following the lead of his brother and probably only ever felt comfortable when someone told him what to do. No wonder he’d enlisted in the army.

“Anything else we need?” Hanna asked. Rudi cast covetous eyes at Conrad’s bow, but the memory of how keenly he’d felt the loss of his own stayed his hand.

“We’ve got enough,” he decided, and after banking up the fire enough to keep any dangerous animals at bay until the adventurers awoke, he led the way into the woods.

 

“Where are we going?” Fritz asked after a while. Mannslieb was almost full now, and even under the sheltering trees enough silvery moonlight filtered through the branches to make everything stand out clearly in shades of shimmering grey and deep, black shadows.

“Marienburg,” Rudi said without thinking. Hanna frowned, clearly troubled by his candour, but Fritz simply shrugged. Rudi had hoped that by taking to the woods they would make good time and also delay any pursuit, but the heavy set youth was uncomfortable beneath the trees. He constantly delayed them by stumbling into bushes and getting snagged in undergrowth that Rudi would have slipped through without thinking. At least Hanna was managing to keep up without much effort.

“How do we do that?” Fritz asked after a while. Rudi shrugged too, feeling a little nonplussed.

“Head for the river, and follow it downstream,” he said, reverting to the old plan he and Hanna had agreed on, what seemed like a lifetime ago. With hindsight, he found it hard to believe that he had been so naive about the world such a short time before. “Maybe get passage on a riverboat.”

“So long as we stay on board this time,” Hanna said, drawing a blank look from Fritz.

“There’s a clearing ahead,” Rudi said with relief, seeing the moonlight intensify. He strode ahead of the others, leaving Fritz to flounder through the entangling vegetation as best he could, and Hanna to hurry him up.

Alone for a moment, and ignoring the older lad’s muttered profanity, he stood still in the wash of moonlight, examining the glade for clues as to the best direction to take. It was obvious now that entering the woods had been a mistake, so their best bet would be to make for open ground where Fritz and Hanna could move more quickly. Directly north would be impassable, he knew, due to the swamp they’d encountered before, and he was in no hurry to encounter the rat-things again. Fritz had told him that the soldiers hunting them, and Gerhard, were camped to the south, so even if it hadn’t taken them away from Marienburg that direction was out too. But going east meant slogging through the main body of the woodland they’d entered, and that was clearly impossible if they wanted to get a decent head start on the party of sell-swords. He didn’t know how soon Alwyn would be able to perform her distance-jumping trick again, but it was clear her range was limited in some way. He needed to be sure they were beyond it before the sun rose.

“That way,” he decided at last. The going looked easier and the trees were less mature, so the boundary of the woodland must be close. With a prickle of unease he noted that it was more southerly than their current course, but that couldn’t be helped, it wasn’t as if they were going to be marching towards the soldiers for the several hours it would take to reach their camp. Once they got to the tree line they could turn east again, resuming their course to the Reik.

“You’re the expert,” Hanna said in a neutral tone. Rudi turned to look at her, unsure of how to respond. Things seemed different between them now, in a fashion he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Before he could think how to reply, he was struck by something odd about the ground where she stood. The moonlight was reflecting from the grass in a rippling sheen of silver, pockmarking it with black irregular shadows. He bent to take a closer look.

“Can you do that thing with the light?” he asked. Hanna nodded dubiously.

“If you’re sure we can’t be seen…” she began.

“Just for a moment.” Despite himself an edge of urgency had crept into his voice. “It could be important.”

“Did you find some tracks?” Fritz asked, looming over him and blocking out part of the moonlight with his shadow. Rudi was about to tell him to move, but thought better of it, his body would conceal the light from any observers that might be around.

“I’m not sure,” he said instead. “We’re about to find out.”

Hanna frowned. Her face took on the by now familiar expression of concentration. A phantom candle flame like the one she’d conjured up in the ruin winked into existence in the space between them. Fritz gasped and shied away.

“Douse it!” Rudi had seen enough. Alarmed at the intensity of his command, Hanna let the evanescent flame wink out. They were all left momentarily blinded by the sudden rush of darkness. Rudi blinked, letting his eyes readjust to the softer moonlight.

“Did you recognise them?” Hanna asked. In that momentary flash Rudi had seen clearly visible footprints in the soft ground. He nodded.

“Beastmen,” he said.

 

Though he strained his ears, and kept every nerve taut for tell-tale rustlings in the undergrowth, Rudi could find no further trace of the mutants before they finally broke through the trees into open ground. As they stepped out from under the branches he felt a flood of relief, which he was sure his companions would be sharing.

“Thank Shallya for that,” Hanna muttered under her breath, and Rudi nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

“Are we safe now?” Fritz asked, his voice trembling slightly.

“I can’t see any signs of them having left the woods,” Rudi replied. It was a slim shred of safety to him, but it reassured Fritz anyway. He began to parallel the tree line, keeping close to the shadows. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“Far enough away to see them coming if you’re wrong,” Hanna said, glancing over her shoulder as she moved away from the woods. Out here the moonlight was so bright it could almost have been an overcast day if it wasn’t for the lack of colours. The whole desolate landscape was limned in delicate shades of silvery grey. As she turned to watch where she was treading, her hair rippled like liquid light.

“Oh for Taal’s sake!” Rudi said, but suddenly went quiet. He realised that his instincts had betrayed him: far from being a refuge, the looming tree line could all too quickly become a deadly trap. He raised his voice a little. “Not too far. That way’s still south.”

In the end they compromised, and they skirted the wood at a distance that Rudi estimated was at least twice a bowshot, the stand of trees on their left was like a looming thundercloud against the shimmering night sky. As he’d hoped they made better time now. The moss was comfortably springy underfoot, and what vegetation grew there was sparse enough to avoid. Now their eyes had adjusted to the moonlight they were able to walk as fast as they would have by day.

“Can you hear something?” Fritz asked after a while. He had stopped to gaze out over the undulating ground. Rudi shook his head.

“Like what?” he asked. The simpleton shrugged.

“I don’t know. Just something.” A hint of their old animosity began to surface in his voice. “You’re the outdoorsman, aren’t you?”

“Quiet!” Hanna said, an expression of alarm flashing across her face. Rudi bit back the retort he’d been about to hurl, and strained his ears. A faint metallic sound drifted on the air, like coins clinking in a purse.

“I don’t quite…” he began, and Hanna hushed him with a gesture.

“Horses!” she said. Rudi almost laughed.

“Out here?” he asked. “Don’t be ridiculous.” Then the words died in his throat. Dark silhouettes began to appear over a rise in the moor, the outlines of horses and riders punched against the stars like holes in the sky. Five, ten, a dozen…

“Get down!”

For a moment he dared to hope that they’d escaped detection, but the leading rider spurred his mount into a trot. A voice floated to them on the wind.

“Verber, Gessler, go with him, see what’s out there.” Two more of the riders veered off, to follow the first.

“Make for the trees!” Rudi said. “It’s our only chance!” Horses would be useless in the tangled undergrowth, and he was sure he’d be able to evade the riders if they dismounted. With that he was up and running, heading for the safety of the wood.

“Get away from the trees, go back to the trees…” Fritz grumbled, but he started running nevertheless. Rudi looked round for Hanna, prepared to have to urge her on, but she was following him, a pace or two behind. Over her shoulder a shout went up, and the rest of the troop followed their fellows.

“Who are they?” she gasped, risking a quick look behind.

“Cavalry,” Fritz replied. “From the camp.” Rudi shot him a suspicious glance, wondering how the simpleton could be so sure. Then the moonlight caught the sheen of armour; it became dazzlingly bright. He turned away to concentrate on running as hard as he could. He ignored the pain in his chest and legs, the weight of his pack, he ignored everything except the need to get away.

For a moment he dared to think they might make it. The dark line of trees grew with every step, but the ground was shaking under his feet, and the rumble of hooves and clink of harness was loud in his ears. Abruptly the sight of the wood was cut off by the flank of a horse that had swung round ahead of him. Then there was a second, and a third.

“Halt in the name of the Emperor!” a voice shouted, “or die where you stand!”

Rudi stumbled to a halt, and gasped for breath. Fritz too was breathing in great whoops of air, only Hanna seemed in control.

“Oh, thank goodness,” she said, in a voice so unlike her own that Rudi had to look to make sure her lips were moving. The confident, assertive tone had gone, to be replaced by the fluttering, squeaky intonation of some of the village girls back in Kohlstadt. “We thought you were bandits. We got lost, and…”

“How very fortunate we happened along,” a new and familiar voice cut in. Rudi shivered and his body turned to ice as he turned. “You’re certainly a long way from Kohlstadt.”

Gerhard looked down at him from the saddle of his sable horse, his face the only clearly discernable thing in the solid mass of darkness. He gestured to his men, and the horses closed around the fugitives like a solid wall of flesh.

“Take them,” he said.

 

 

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