Would he have understood? Lucien was my friend, more
than friend … he was dearer than any brother. Please,
specter, tell me, what would Huma – ?”
“Huma would have done what Huma would have
done,” Rennard interjected quickly. Thinking of Huma
stirred memories and emotions that the ghost refused to
acknowledge. “Just as you will do what you will do.”
“That is no answer!” Dornay said angrily. “Would he
have understood my need for vengeance? Tell me!”
I will not do this! Rennard told those who’d sent him.
Dornay’s path must be his own! What course his life takes
will be his choice, not that of some interfering deity!
The ghost thought he heard whispers then, but perhaps
they were only his own thoughts, speaking back to him:
WOULD YOU CONDEMN ANYONE, EVEN YOUR
WORST ENEMY, TO A FATE SUCH AS yours?
A fate such as mine? Erik’s thirst for vengeance could
hardly be as great a crime as those I committed. But,
Rennard could not help wondering, once he’s done murder,
he might sink lower still. One day, he might find himself
trapped in a futile flight from those he killed and who,
because of him, would never be able to rest either.
The “Song of Huma” ran through his mind.
“Huma,” Rennard whispered. The man who was now
legend never abandoned me, he even looked up to me.
Huma – the man, not the legend – had been there in the end,
trying to save me from myself. Rather than face him, I took
the coward’s way out. I slit my own throat.
Rennard turned his eyes briefly to the murky heavens. “I
will do this for you, Huma … of the Lance. I will do it for
you, not the gods. Never them.”
Pale eyes narrowing, the ghost answered the young
knight’s question. “He would have understood VERY well
what you were doing, Erik Dornay. You have my oath on
that. Unlike you, however, Huma would have understood
the meaning and the consequences as well. And, therefore,
he would never have considered your dark course.” Rennard
shifted so as to allow the fire to illuminate his features.
“Huma would have known that such a course can lead one
only to a fate . . . like mine. Each life I took follows me,
punishes me.” Rennard shivered, the flickering shadows
caused by the fire too lifelike at that moment. “The number
still horrifies me, when they begin to gather.”
“But they killed Lucien! They don’t deserve to live! I
have to … to …” Backing away, Dornay stumbled over to his
horse. He untied the animal and wearily mounted, ignoring
the fact that his helm still lay on the ground.
“You may deny me, mortal. You may even deny Huma,
whom you claim to admire. Can you, though, deny
yourself?”
Erik Dornay did not respond. He turned his horse and
urged the animal on with a harsh kick to the ribs.
Rennard materialized in front of him. “Huma – the squire I
trained, the knight I fought beside and against, the legend
that led you to the Solamnic orders – watches us. He had a
way of affecting others, Erik Dornay, even me. For that
reason and that reason alone, I will not let this end. I will
haunt you day and night if I have to.”
The Knight of the Rose kicked his protesting charger
again, forcing the horse to ride through Rennard.
The ghost disappeared, made himself reappear in front
of the startled animal. The horse tried to turn away, but Erik
once more forced the terrified beast to keep to the chosen
route. Snorting in frustration and anxiety, the mount again
raced through the apparition and galloped down the path.
Rennard followed. He’d wait until the horse could go
no farther, which couldn’t be very long. What would Erik do
when he realized it was impossible to escape the ghost?
Rennard did not know. The young knight was wavering in
his desire for revenge, but it was at such an emotional
junction that the greatest danger lay. Erik might go through
with his dark plan merely to prove to himself he was not a