The Many Deaths of the Black Company

  “I don’t know yet, do I? I’ve been too damned busy answering dumb questions. Leave me alone long enough and I might figure it out, though.”

  Tempers were getting short and manners were becoming frayed. I sighed, rubbed my forehead and temples because I had begun to develop a headache, listened to the sounds of more people descending the stair. “Willow, see if you can keep those fools out of here till One-Eye’s ready.” I looked ahead without eagerness. Not only did the cavern turn to the right, it steepened. The water-polished floor was covered with frost. The footing was going to be treacherous.

  “Caw!”

  The white crow was up there somewhere. It had been announcing itself repeatedly, sounding more impatient every time.

  I moved forward carefully. When I reached the steeper floor, I knelt and brushed the frost away to improve the footing. I told Sahra and the Radisha, “If you have to follow me, you’d better be even more careful than I am.”

  They insisted. They were careful. Not one of us slipped and went flailing back down the slope. “Here’s Longo and Sparkle,” I said. “And that wad definitely looks like the Howler.”

  In fact, that wad definitely was that crippled little Master Sorcerer. He had been one of the Lady’s henchmen in the far north, then our enemy down here. He had become a prisoner of war along with his ally Longshadow, and Lady must have foreseen some use for him or she would not have kept him alive. But he was not likely to get released while I was in charge. In his way, he was crazier than Soulcatcher.

  The crow chided me for taking so long.

  The Howler was awake. His will was such that he could move his eyes, though nothing more was within his capacity. One glimpse of the madness within those dark orbs and I knew that this man could not be permitted to make it back to the world. “Be very careful around this one,” I said. “Or he’ll nail you as surely as Soulcatcher nailed Swan. One-Eye. Howler is awake. He can move his eyes.”

  One-Eye repeated my warning, absentmindedly. “Don’t get too close to him.”

  The crow began to nag. Its voice gave birth to a particularly annoying generation of echoes.

  “Ah. Radisha. Here’s your brother. And he seems to be in pretty good shape. No! Don’t touch! That’s probably what contaminated the stasis spells protecting the dead men. You’ll just have to be patient, same as the rest of us.”

  She made a sound like a low growl.

  The icy cave ceiling above us made creaking sounds that added to the volleys of echoes.

  I continued, “It’s hard. I know it’s hard. But right now patience is the best tool we have for getting them out of here safely.” Once I was sure she would restrain herself I resumed inching forward. The white crow cawed impatiently. Out loud I thought, “I do believe I’ll wring that thing’s neck.”

  The Radisha reminded me, “You’ll build bad kharma. You might come back as a crow or parrot in your next life.”

  “One of the beauties of being Vehdna is that you don’t have a next life to worry about. And God, the All-Powerful, the Merciful, has no love at all for crows. Except to use as plagues upon the unrighteous. Does anybody know if Master Santaraksita planned to come down here?” My organizational skills had vanished because of my own eagerness to reach the Captured. It occurred to me only now that the scholar’s knowledge might prove especially useful here—if he could connect anything in this cave to known myth.

  I got no answer. “I’ll send for him if I have to. Ah. Sahra, here’s your honey. Don’t touch!” I said that a little too loudly. The echoes got very boisterous. Several small icicles broke loose from the ceiling. They shattered with an almost metallic tinkle when they struck the floor.

  The crow spoke, very distinctly, “Come here!”

  And I, having finally figured it out, told it, “If your manners don’t improve dramatically, you might not get out of here at all.”

  The bird was strutting back and forth nervously in front of Croaker and Lady. Soulcatcher had left those two snuggled up together, arranged so that the Captain had one arm around Lady’s waist while she held his other hand with both of hers in her lap. Additional delicate touches suggested that Soulcatcher’s wicked sense of play had peaked for this bit of still life.

  If Catcher had left any booby traps at all, this was where they would be. “One-Eye. I need help.” Any traps that existed were beyond me.

  Lady’s eyes were open. There was no dust on them. She was angry. And the white crow wanted to tell me all about it.

  “Patience,” I counseled, close to becoming impatient myself. “Swan. One-Eye. Come on up here.” Swan arrived first despite coming from farther away. I asked, “You recall anything special she did with these two? Any little bit of sneakiness?”

  “No. I wouldn’t worry about it. By the time she laid them out, she was worried about what might happen next. That’s the way she is. When she’s starting something, it’s her whole world and she has no doubts about any part of it. But the closer she comes to getting finished, the more trouble she has keeping her confidence up.”

  “Nice to know that she’s human.” I did not mean a word of that. “One-Eye. Look for booby traps around here. And make up your mind. Tell me if you can bring these people back, darn it!” My headache had not gotten any better. But, thank the God of Mercies, it had grown no worse.

  Another icicle fell.

  “I know. I know. I heard you the first time you asked.” He grumbled something about wishing he knew a way to charm me up a better love life.

  I stared past Croaker and Lady. The cavern went on. Pale light barely illuminated it. There was no gold in that at all now. A touch of silver, a touch of grey, a lot of blue ice. In fact, the sedimentary rock seemed to give way to actual ice now, ahead. “Willow. Did Catcher go up there when you were here?”

  He checked where I was looking. “No. But she could have during an earlier visit.”

  Someone had traveled in that direction recently, in cavern scales of time. There were still clear tracks in the frost. And I suspected that I would not enjoy the journey once I began to follow them. But I would do so. I had no choice. I had failed elsewhere by letting Narayan and the Daughter of Night get away. That Kina undoubtedly supplied them with a subtle boost did not sufficiently signify. I should have been better prepared. “One-Eye. Talk to me. Can you resurrect these people or not?”

  “If you’d stop barking for five minutes I could probably figure that out.”

  “Take your time, sweetness. It’ll take us a while to starve.” That ice up there must have been what Swan had meant when he mentioned ice on the plain.

  * * *

  “You’ve had all the fool-around time I’m willing to give you,” I told One-Eye. “Can you do it? Yes or no. Right now.”

  “The shape I’m in, I need more rest.” His speech was slow and slurred and had taken on an odd rhythm that made following him difficult. He was right, of course. All of us needed rest. But we also needed to finish our business and get off the plain. Hunger was a reality already. It was not going to go away. I feared it might become a companion as intimate and dreaded as it had been during the siege of Jaicur.

  I had decided, already, that I would adopt Uncle Doj’s suggested strategy. We would recover only a few people now. We would return for the others later. But that meant making cruel choices. Somebody would end up hating me no matter what I did. If I was really clever, I would find some good old-fashioned Goblinlike way of spreading the blame all around me. Those tagged to wait could not hate everybody.

  And there went some good old-fashioned wishful thinking, Sleepy. We were talking about human beings. If there is any way to be contrary, unreasonable and obnoxious, human beings are sure to find and pursue it. With verve and enthusiasm at whatever might be the most inconvenient time.

  86

  “Is anybody at all still up topside?” I demanded. I had settled down for a short nap when the timing had seemed appropriate and that had turned into a long nap that might have become a per
manent nap had not so many people been around to keep me from drifting too far away. I dreamed while I was out, I knew that, but I remembered none of it. The smell of Kina remained strong in my nostrils, so I knew where I must have gone, though.

  One-Eye was seated beside me, apparently assisting me with my snoring. A worried Goblin appeared, checking to make certain his best friend did not drift too far into sleep. Beyond me, Mother Gota had become engrossed in a protracted debate with the white crow. That must have been a classic dialog to disinterested listeners.

  Goblin murmured, “From now on, don’t make any sudden movements, Sleepy. Always look around you. Always make sure that you’re not going to damage any of our friends.”

  I heard Tobo talking rapidly, softly, in a businesslike voice. I could not distinguish his words. Somewhere Uncle Doj rattled away, too. “What’s happening?”

  “We’ve started waking them up. It’s not as complicated as we feared it might be but it takes time and care, and the people we bring out aren’t going to be any use to us after they waken—if you had any plans along those lines. One-Eye worked it all out before he collapsed.” The little wizard sounded grimmer suddenly.

  “Collapsed? One-Eye collapsed? Was it just exhaustion?” I hoped.

  “I don’t know. I don’t want to know. Yet. For now, I’m just going to let him rest. Right down on the edge of the stasis. Or even into it if I think that’s necessary. Once his body regains its strength, I’ll bring him out and see how bad it really was.” He did not sound optimistic.

  I said, “If we had to we could leave him here, in stasis, till we could give him proper treatment.” Which reminded me. “You’re not just getting everyone up, are you? There’s no way we can nurse and feed the whole crowd.” Surely the Captured would not be able to take care of themselves after fifteen years of just sitting around, stasis or not. They might even be as weak and unskilled as babies and have to learn everything all over again.

  “No, Sleepy. We’re going to do five people. That’s all.”

  “Uhm. Good. Hey! Where the heck did the standard go? It was right over there. I’m the Standardbearer. I have to keep track—”

  “I had it moved over by the gap to the stair. So somebody going that way can take it upstairs. Will you quit fussing? That’s Sahra’s specialty.”

  “Speaking of Sahra— Tobo! Where do you think you’re going?” While I was talking with Goblin, the boy had slipped past and headed up the cave.

  “I was just gonna go see what’s up there.”

  “No. You’re just gonna stay right here and help your uncle and Goblin take care of your father, the Captain and the Lieutenant.”

  He gave me a black look. Despite everything, he still had those moments when he was just a boy. He put on a pouty face that made me grin.

  Willow Swan came up behind me. “I’ve got a problem, Sleepy.”

  “Which would be?”

  “I can’t find Cordy. Cordy Mather. Not anywhere.”

  From the corner of my eye I noted that the Radisha had overheard. She rose slowly from a squat in front of her brother, looked our way. She said nothing nor did anything otherwise that might betray an interest. It was not common knowledge that she and Mather had enjoyed an intimate relationship.

  “You’re sure?”

  “I’m sure.”

  “You did bring him down here?”

  “Absolutely.”

  I grunted. There was one other absentee whose nonpresence I had been willing to ignore until some rational excuse for her disappearance arose. The shapeshifter Lisa Bowalk, unable to shed the guise of a black panther, had gone up onto the plain as a prisoner but was not now to be found among the dead above or the Captured down below.

  Lisa Bowalk had been possessed of a towering hatred for the Company, and particularly for One-Eye because it was One-Eye’s fault that she had become trapped in the feline shape. I had to ask. “What about the panther, Willow? It’s not around here anywhere, either.”

  “What panther? Oh. I remember. I don’t know.” He was looking around like he thought he might spot his old friend Mather hiding behind a stalagmite. “I remember we had to leave her upstairs because we couldn’t get her cage around the first turn in the stair. I mean, it would have gone if Catcher and I didn’t have anything else to mess with, but we couldn’t manage it and the rest of the string both. So Catcher decided to leave the cage up there for later. I don’t know what happened when later came. I don’t remember much of anything that happened after we came down here. Maybe One-Eye should give me another dose of that memory spell.” He tugged on and twisted the ends of his hair, girl-style, and stared down the slope. “I know I left Cordy right down there, just a little above Blade, where it seemed like the floor would be more comfortable.”

  “Right down there” was the downhill edge of the clot of seven dead men. There had to be a connection. “Goblin, what’s the story? Are we going to wake these people up or not?” Me, ignoring everything he had said earlier.

  Goblin responded with a sneer that turned into one of his big toad grins. “I’ve already got Murgen out.”

  “But I wanted him down here where I could ask questions.”

  “I mean I’ve got him out of stasis, bimbo-brain. He’s right over there. I’m working on the Captain and Lady now. Tobo and Doj have been doing prelims on Thai Dei and the Prahbrindrah Drah.”

  Exactly according to my expectations. With the latter two men included entirely for political reasons. Neither was likely to contribute much to the Company’s glory or survival.

  I moved down to where Murgen lay snoring. The echoing racket and the melting ice webs were the only changes I saw. I squatted. “Anybody think to bring blankets down?” I had not. I am what you would have to call disorganized when it comes to present-tense operations. It had not occurred to me to bring spare clothing or blankets or gear. But I sure can plan bloodshed and general mayhem real well.

  There were treasure chambers down here somewhere, though. I had glimpsed several in my dreams. There might be something useful there—if we could find them.

  My stomach growled. I was getting hungry. The rumble reminded me that it would not be long before our situation became desperate.

  Murgen’s eyes opened. He tried to form an expression, a smile for Sahra, but the effort was too much for him. His gaze shifted to me. A whisper struggled through his lips. “The Books. Get … the Daughter…” His eyes closed again.

  It was true. The Captured were not going to jump up and dance tarantellas when they were liberated.

  Murgen’s message was clear. The Books of the Dead were down here. Something had to be done before the Daughter of Night got another chance to begin copying them. And I had no doubt that she would manage that, despite Soulcatcher. She had Kina backing her up.

  “I’ll take care of it.” I did not have a ghost of a notion how I would manage that, though.

  87

  The rescue was running smoothly, like a well-greased siege engine missing only a few minor parts. Goblin had Murgen and Croaker headed toward the surface aboard makeshift litters.

  Croaker had not said a word, nor had he made any effort to do so, even though he had been awake and aware. He stared at me for a long time. I had no idea what was going on inside his head. I just hoped he was sane.

  Before he departed, Murgen did give my hand a small squeeze. I hoped that was an expression of gratitude or encouragement.

  I was not at all happy about his being unable to provide information or advice. I had not thought much about what role I would play after the Captured were wakened. I had operated on the unspoken assumption, more or less, that I would retire to my Annals—or even farther, to the Standardbearer job, if Murgen wanted to be Annalist again.

  More and more people kept coming downstairs even though I had tried to send word up to warn everyone that they faced a horrible climb going in the other direction.

  The white crow continued to curse and jabber semicoherently until it los
t its voice. I was concerned about Lady. She had managed that feathery spy quite well for a long time, never giving herself away even when she did try to clue me in, but now she seemed to be losing control. Of herself. I assured her repeatedly that she would go upstairs as soon as I had bearers capable of getting her there. Doj, Sahra and Gota had Thai Dei ready to travel. I gave them the go-ahead. One-Eye would follow him, then Lady would go. The Prahbrindrah Drah would be the last, this time.

  Tobo seemed fascinated by his father, apparently because he could not quite believe that the man was real in a fleshy sense. Circumstances had kept his parents separate almost since his conception.

  The boy started to tag along after the rest of the family. I called out, “Tobo, stay down here. You have a job to do. See about your dad after we get Lady and the Prince moved out. Hello, Suvrin. Why’re you down here?”

  “Curiosity. Sri Santaraksita’s curiosity. He insisted that he had to see the caverns. He drove me crazy reminding me how storied they are in religious legend. He couldn’t be this close to something like that and not explore it personally.”

  “I see.” I noticed the old librarian now. He was working his way up the line of old men, examining each and murmuring to himself. Occasionally he would bounce up and down in excitement. Swan had gone back to make him keep his hands to himself. He wanted to finger and sniff every bit of ancient metal and cloth. He seemed to have trouble understanding that those old men were still alive but very vulnerable.

  “Swan. Bring him up here.” I did want the benefit of his expertise just a while ago. In a softer voice, I told Suvrin, “You’re the one who’s going to carry him back upstairs if he can’t make it on his own. And I’ll be right behind you, giving encouragement by poking you with a spear.”

  Suvrin seemed to have thought about the climb already. He was not looking forward to it, either. “The man has no concept—”

  I interrupted. “What about Shivetya?”

  “He’s back right side up and safely away from the pit. I can’t say he seemed particularly grateful, though.”