Legend had it there’d been mixing even before the ylver came here across the Eastern Ocean. For example, red hair among ylver was supposed to be a sign of ancient mixing with the mythical Voitusotar, who were said to live in a land of fog and ice and sorcery. Mothers and nurses still sometimes told children the Voitusotar would get them if they weren’t good, though such threats were frowned on these days. Interestingly, red hair tended generally to be admired, perhaps because the Voitusotar had been feared. Though that admiration didn’t extend to those of the Sisterhood.
While Varia had let her mind wander, they’d passed the lesser cats—bobcat and lynx—the foxes, and the gracefully tireless mustelines. Raien, aware of her preoccupation, had discontinued his monologues on wildlife. Finally the loop took them past paddocks with farm animals, which after twenty years of farm life, hardly excited Varia. At the end they each put a gold piece in the donations box, and she squeezed her husband’s hand affectionately. He was more than just an idealist with intelligence, talent, will and political power. He was a good and decent person.
And he’d be an excellent father, as he was a husband and lover.
PART 5: War
34: Invasion
There was still enough twilight that Melody could see the camps spread around her, the armies of five kingdoms and one tribe, their cookfires dying, their tents low shadowed humps. No doubt some of their men were already asleep.
They’d get little enough of it this night.
Late Five-Month had advantages and disadvantages for invasion. Grazing was good, and they had the whole summer ahead of them, if need be. On the other hand, the season was subject to thunderstorms, and the nights were short. And tonight they had much to do between nightfall and dawn, especially between nightfall and moonrise.
She recognized the Indrossan command tent by the torches lashed to spears thrust in the ground beside its entrance. And as she approached, by its being guarded. She dismounted in front of it, handed the reins to her orderly, and loud and clear, identified herself to the guards as Marshal Macurdy’s aide, then told them to take her to their commander.
And waited. Despite her position, and her bright new colonel’s insignia, they stared back insolently, showing no sign of obeying. So she drew her saber, and before either man realized what she had in mind, held its point to the belly of the nearest.
“You son of a bitch! Did you hear what I said? How do you want it? Quick and bloody, here and now? Or at a rope’s end tomorrow, pulled up to strangle from a branch after a drumhead court?”
The man backed away into the entrance, and she followed, keeping her blade at his belly while her aide, a Kullvordi, followed with his own saber, covering her back. When she was inside, she shouted the Indrossan general’s name. “Eldersov! I have orders for you from Marshal Macurdy!”
It wasn’t entirely dark inside. She could see a short corridor through the tent, with rooms on each side set off by curtains. Lamplight filtered through two of them, and a hand brushed one aside. “General!” the guard squawked. “She drew her sword on me and forced her way in!”
“You miserable get of a troll and a sow!” Melody snapped, “An insult to me is an insult to the marshal!” Her glance shifted to the general. “I’m Marshal Macurdy’s aide. I stopped at the entrance, showed them my baton of authority, and told them I had orders to deliver to you from the marshal. They stood there and sneered.”
His grunt dripped scorn. “You’re a woman. We don’t take orders from women here.”
“They’re not my orders, they’re Marshal Macurdy’s. Do you refuse them? When I carry a message from the marshal, I speak with his voice.”
“We take no one’s orders from a woman.”
Abruptly her sword tip moved from the guard to the general. “You just signed your death warrant, general. Unless you reconsider.” Even while she said it, she knew he wouldn’t, which it seemed to her was just as well. Otherwise he’d be a source of trouble and danger throughout the campaign. “No? Where’s your second in command?”