Wars of the Aoten
Chapter LVIII
Artur dumped Rhodan at Aachen’s feet with a curt, “Take care of him,” and strode out of the building, Wyllem falling in behind. “We have to find one named Vespus,” he told him flatly. At that moment, Theodoric — breathlessly running with Pepin, not used to moving quickly on flat ground — intercepted him. Within the smithy shop, the Melic king could see his subject Aachen crouching over the prone figure of Rhodan.
“What have you done?” he demanded. “What madness is this?”
“Many birds may fly into the ear, but what nests in the heart will not change,” sighed Aachen.
“A murderer walks among us,” said Artur, hitting a quick pace toward the collection of Raspar archers. “I have neither the time nor patience for long discussions on what is guilt or what is fair. I care only to catch the criminal.”
“Artur, you must respect these other nations! They do not share your ways!”
“Excuse me, but on what land do you reside?” Artur now stopped to face Theodoric. “Rufoux custom does not allow killing a man outside the fight. Shouldn’t these squatters respect Rufoux ways?”
“Of course! But hospitality falls far short of torturing a guest. Mercedi will not long stand for her people to be so abused. A man who would have friends must show himself friendly.”
“There you go again —“
“Look, I speak plainly. Is Rhodan the guilty man? No — you know that to be true.”
“Yes,” Artur said matter-of-factly.
“Yes, and you always knew, didn’t you? You must not make an innocent man suffer for the mere sake of expedience, not if you expect allegiance from that man’s clan!”
“Mog’s goblins I won’t!” declared Artur, and again made his way toward the Raspar camp. “A man whose clan I’m counting upon has died. An eye for a life is a trade any Koinoni would make.”
Theodoric kept after Artur as he walked. “Yes, the guilty must suffer, but not at the expense of the innocent. You’ve made Rhodan a victim now as much as Krait. Make a target of the guiltless, and in the end all will pay the price of the guilty!”
“Fine, I’ll make sure the next guy I hurt is guilty,” said Artur without pretense of caring. “Help me find this Vespus.”
At the outskirts of the gathered Raspars, Artur called out the name, but though a few men lifted their heads to look, none responded nor offered guidance. Still he persisted, and the ruckus eventually drew the attention of Mercedi.
“Lo, whom do ye seek?” she asked.
“Vespus. Can’t you tell?”
“Lo, he is not here,” she said shakily.
“How do you know?” Artur sounded caustic.
“Nay, he abides not here,” Mercedi said again, glancing to Theodoric. “I know my men, and I know he sits not among them.”
“Where can we find him, then?” Artur demanded.
“Lo, why do ye seek him?”
“He has some connection with Krait; he might be connected with his death. We know this is true, so don’t try to hide him. I will talk with him.”
“Lo, how do ye know this?”
“Regent,” Theodoric interrupted. “Your man Rhodan, who led us through the tunnels, has offered information in the best interests of the alliance. He has suggested that we talk to a man named Vespus to determine how the Bedoua Krait died.” Theodoric hoped to stall revealing the truth about Rhodan’s testimony as long as possible, to break the news as benignly as possible.
“Lo, Rhodan told ye? How could that be?” Mercedi‘s voice choked, aghast that Rhodan would risk compromising her and her clan.
Theodoric held Artur at arm’s length with one hand. “As I say, regent Mercedi, for the good of the alliance as a whole, in the best interests of defeating our real enemy, the Aoten, he has offered this aid to our inquiry. So now we must find Vespus.”
Mercedi seemed to be somewhat calmed, but at that moment Aachen approached. “He’ll not have use of that eye again. The best I could do was put salve and a bandage upon his wound. But the eye will not see again,” he said with a gesture.
The Raspar regent followed the direction of his hand and saw Rhodan’s form in the distance, now lying flat on his back outside the smithy shop. A handful of Melic women continued to tend to him, and suddenly Mercedi realized everything. “Lo, so you feed your bloodlust upon my man!” she exclaimed at Artur.
A collection of clansmen began to gather around the sparring leaders; Theodoric spoke a short word to Pepin and sent him off quickly.
“Lo, what betrayal have ye conceived?” Mercedi snapped. She sent some two dozen Raspars off with the words, “Go rescue Rhodan from these barbarians!” And then back at Artur, “Lo, well did I know that Rhodan would not accuse a fellow Raspar on his own! What have ye done to my subject? Why now does he fall under Rufoux judgment? Do ye not realize he is the only reason the Raspars arrived here within your defenses?”
“Perhaps he did cause Krait’s death, then, bringing murderers among us,” Artur snarled back. “And you’re under Rufoux judgment because you’re on Rufoux land! But none of that matters a thing to me now; all I care about now is to find this Vespus.”
“Nay, ye will not put your hands upon another Raspar to torture! Did we not bring ye to the safety of your village when ye were broken and helpless? We owe ye nothing! Indeed, instead ye will answer to Raspar justice!”
“Regent, we must remain one!” Theodoric broke in urgently. “We must not accuse each other over protocol, for our unity remains most important! Let us trace the killer together, in unity, just as we must fight the giants!”
“Nay, but what trap do ye intend for me?” Mercedi raged. “What conspiracy do you weave to ensnare me?”
“That is the point, regent,” said Artur impatient and surly. “We have no separate scheme. The conspiracy lay in Krait, along with a Raspar called Vespus. We must find him.”
At this Mercedi realized that the Rufoux drew very close to discovering the truth, and she redoubled her efforts to throw them off. She foolishly fell into depraved habit.
“Lo, perhaps I agree with Theodoric. We can speak of this matter more calmly. I must remember I visit here only at your pleasure. I would have private conference with ye,” and with that she took Artur’s great hand with both of hers and held it tightly between her breasts.
“What are you doing?” bellowed Artur, his eyes disbelieving, grasping her wrist and tearing his hand free. “You cast upon me a public transgression! Did you not hear my wedding vows? Do you not know I must destroy anyone who would violate my marriage? Already you make Rufoux ways a laughing stock, even within the village! Do you mean to challenge the clan yet again? Or do you wish to join Krait, regent?”
Within the gathering crowd Carolingia stalked, keeping a sidelong glance upon Artur, smirking and smoldering.
Mercedi was stricken still, silent, hoping for another outlet for her misdirection, and one immediately offered itself from over the stockade wall: Pepin returned with Dungo. Theodoric moved to speak with him confidentially, but he moved too slowly.
“Lo, there! Did ye not say Krait conspired against the clans? Then there approaches your culprit!”
Dungo didn’t hesitate. “What do I hear, Excellency, more accusation? Why do you call me here — just to hear more abuse? I must express my outrage, milady, at this inclination of yours toward slander! Ho-ho! The Bedoua have just about had enough — enough insinuation, enough persecution! Nothing still keeps us here, except the full moon bearing down upon us — no reason for us to risk our lives in the face of such shameful abuse! I stand shocked and dismayed that you, Regent Mercedi, stoop to such depths and make criminals of us, the Bedoua, those who have lost a dear friend and trusted confidant, adding to our unbearable grief. I am shocked, milady! What do you accuse us of now?”
“Vizier,” said Theodoric, “I asked for your presence because a serious charge has been brought against a Raspar man, Vespus. He has been connected with a charge against Krait.”
/> “Krait?!” Dungo blurted. “Krait accused? How can this be? I remind you, he is dead! Killed! He gave his life in service of this paltry group! He lies rotting away slowly, so that even his corpse will not have a proper end! You might as well accuse me! You might as well accuse — accuse —” Dungo blathered as he tried to think of something, then pointed out a Rufoux child, “Her! This outrage mystifies me, simply appalls me! I can not bring myself to stay another moment in this company that would make vendetta against the dead, rather than seek justice for his killer!”
“That is the point,” Artur said again. “The point we must stay upon. We will never know whatever Krait might have done, we will never know his killer, unless we find Vespus!”
“Lo, ye choose to indict the Raspars, instead of seeking the truth about the Bedoua,” said Mercedi, her manipulation giving way to natural Raspar paranoia. “Ye plan to inflict your judgment upon my people? But ye will have to go through Raspar arrows first, and kill me as well!”
“Regent! Vizier!” said Theodoric. “We must not target any clan, for no clan is guilty. We seek only a man, the guilty man, that justice might be done for Krait.”
“Yes, we only seek justice —” said Artur.
“For our real enemy is the Aoten,” said Theodoric, before Artur could finish, much to his displeasure. “The giants will steal your food and homes; they will kill your children. But neither so the Raspars, nor the Bedoua. A colony of bees will bless the sittlebark, and a wood beetle will vex it; but it takes a colony of beetles to kill it.”
“We’d all like you to make actual sense,” said Artur.
“May I pose a question?” asked Wyllem.
“When did you ever not?” Artur blared, exasperated.
“We all know the Raspars for their discipline. Have we ever seen them act upon anything but the orders of their regent?”
“Nay, never. The clan trusts me, and obeys me, and only me,” said Mercedi confidently.
“Then how could a Raspar have killed a man without you knowing?”
Theodoric nearly collapsed at this turn of the discourse. But Dungo and Artur didn’t notice him, for their attention had turned to Mercedi, whose face drained of color.
“Ah, the Rufoux brain at work,” said Artur, his anger settling into vindictiveness. “What do you say to this, regent?”
Mercedi stood speechless. She lay bare, helpless, caught at last, her only protection archers who could do no better than shoot arrows into the ground.
“And so she accused Krait, even as his body lingered warm,” said Dungo.
“Fellows!” said Theodoric frantically. “Comrades! We must remain together as one! Death awaits us all if we don’t fight the Aoten together! We must remain together for our clans to have any hope of survival! Yes, a man is dead, a Bedoua man, and he must be avenged; but many more will die if we do not defeat the Aoten! Please friends, we must stay together! We must fight for each other!”
Artur didn’t listen, and his voice turned cold. “You bloody Raspars have never changed, have you? Would you make a ruin of us as you did the Quaar? Perhaps you will not find us so stupid as they were. The Rufoux should have wiped you out, all of you, eons ago, and laid claim to all of Medialia!”
Artur’s hand had taken hold of his sword, and his massive body appeared to swell. He moved as if ready to bear down upon Mercedi, and she pulled a hammer from her belt, the best weapon she could manage. Artur drew upon the sheer blade and loomed toward her; Dungo as well stared upon him fearfully. Theodoric joined his hands together, fingers entwined, and rushing upon Artur hit him as hard as he could upon the chin, using both hands like a club.
Artur’s head snapped back, and his attention turned toward Theodoric. A sudden rage boiled over in him, and, his long sword exposed, Artur pulled his arm back to strike, his eyes casting from shock to anger to respect. Theodoric held his hands down and open, ready to sacrifice himself, and pleaded, “We must fight together! We must remain joined, or the Melics will be no more!”
“Artur!” a distant voice called urgently. Osewold rudely squeezed his shoulders through the surging crowd and cried out again, “The signal! The signal! The Aoten come upon us!”