The Hundreth Tear: Part XXIX

I'd told myself we'd make better time once we found a second horse but that little delusion lasted only a few hours. Merlin might have been the one to teach Arthur and I the basics of horsemanship but he was hard pressed to keep the pace I'd originally set us. Wherever he'd been and whatever he'd been up to had taken a toll on him, and as the miles wore on, I grew increasingly less sure he would be up to handling Amr. I made the mistake once of asking him if he wanted to stop to rest and I swear by the gods that if he'd had a tree branch within reach he'd have switched me.

It took us another day to reach Caerleon, and at nightfall at that. Glynebwy was out of the question until daylight with Merlin plainly showing the strain of the ride so I took him instead to the rendezvous point Lucian and I had agreed upon.

The hills above Caerleon were mined by the Romans for tin and one of the old abandoned Roman mines had served us many times as a refuge during those campaigns against the Saxons. It was reached by a barely passable path and hidden away behind a dense stand of trees, but still I used every precaution in approaching it. No telling if some band of brigands had taken over the spot for their own by now, and Merlin was in no shape to fight off an attack. But when I dismounted and scouted ahead on foot, I found only a small fire tended by a lonely figure who I recognized at once.

"Lucian? Where are the others?"

He sheathed the sword he'd drawn at the sound of my voice. "Gone to Glynebwy looking for you. You find Amr?"

"No, but I've brought someone else." I waved to Merlin who wearily led our horses in towards the fire. "And why aren't you with the men, then?"

Lucian as yet hadn't seen my companion's face. "You needn't worry over them like a mother hen, Kay. Bedwyr's with them. Don't look at me like that! You know damn right well what a stubborn man he is. And he got here in two days, which is a lot more than you can say." He stopped ands stared. "Merlin? Merlin, is that really you? Damnation, Kay! Why didn't you say something. He's ready to fall over."

He nearly knocked me over as he pushed past to take the reins of the horses from the mage, handing them to me as he escorted Merlin over to a seat by the fire. "You look like you've been to Hell and back, man! Here, eat some stew. And there's a skin of wine here."

By the time I'd settled the horses Lucian had Merlin bundled up and seated close to the fire, looking for all the world like some wizened old man. It gave me pause to see him like that and my heart sank. Seeing him like this confirmed my worst fears.

Merlin was not strong enough to stop Amr.

"I'm not dead, you know!" Merlin glared up at me. "Now sit down and tell me what happened again."

"I've already told you on our way here!"

"There's something about trying to keep from falling out of the saddle that keeps one from concentrating on other matters. Again, please." He settled back a little and gave a nod as if waiting for me to recite my letters to him. Lucian interrupted me once when I got to the incident involving Amr and the farmers, which then led to a recounting of how I'd found Merlin. By the time I was done, Merlin had that distracted far-off look in his eyes once more. Lucian noticed it and gave me a trouble look.

I shrugged. "That's all I know. The question is, what has taken possession of Amr? A demon?"

"I can tell you what…or who …it is."

All three of us looked up, startled to see an old woman standing by the mouth of the cave. It was Merlin who spoke first. "Milady Gorfan! How did you find us?"

Bedwyr walked past her into the cave and cleared a spot for the woman to sit. "I brought her. I suggest you listen closely to what the lady has to tell you."

I just nodded, reached for the wineskin, content to let someone else do all the talking now.

*******

"Well. Now we know what we are up against!" Lucian snapped a twig in two and tossed it into the fire.

"We do?" I passed him the wineskin.

"Aye. A dragon! And Lord Merlin here knows how to deal with them, don't you?" His smile vanished as he saw that Merlin's eyes once more had that vacant look. "Gods help us!"

Bedwyr snatched the wineskin from Lucian and took a drink, then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Right. We've got whatever it is outnumbered. How does it stand a chance against a grandmother, an addled mage and a bunch of warriors past their prime? Kay here can just insult it to death."

He started to pass the wine back to Lucian, but another hand took it. "I'm not addled, you know. I'm merely…tired. Amr is heading towards the coast." He squirted some wine into his mouth.

Lucian held out his hand, waiting. "And you would be knowing all this by what means?"

"While you were talking, I was Seeking. Something that powerful leaves a trail of another sort, you know, that only someone else with power might detect. And I did. But I'm afraid I am not strong enough to fight this thing by myself. Not yet. Unfortunately, we can't afford the time to wait for that."

I stared across the fire at Merlin. "So, what do we do? How do we stop him?"

"We use what we have." He smiled. "A grandmother, a tired mage, and our not so old as they think they are warriors. And aye, Kay's sharp tongue."

"And this is how we will do it…"