The Final Act (3/3)

Writers: Estelle, Miriah
Date Posted: 6th September 2020
Series: The Assassin's Husband

Characters: Lorican, Dunrik, Lusilk, Rikol
Description: Rikol and Dunrik find Lorican after his escape
Location: Barrier Lake Weyr
Date: month 5, day 2 of Turn 10
Notes: Mentioned: Jayzine, Varlin

Lusilk

At the edge of the wood, where he crouched in the shadow of a dead tree,
Lorican heard the cry faintly and shuddered with a chill that struck to
his core.

Was she gone? And was the man now coming for him?

He glanced behind him, then back out at the lake, where the sun was
sinking below the glittering ripples on the water. Dragons watched from
the cliffs, and there were still weyrfolk about, he could hear their
laughter in the distance. Lorican knew his instructions - he had to get
the box, then find a dragonrider to take him and Silgan to Sunstone Sea
Hold - but blood matted his hair and soaked the back of his shirt. If he
was seen like this, with the unconscious child, there'd be questions,
and he had no idea what he'd say. His only hope was to wait until full
dark and slip into Lusilk's rooms unseen.

"Silgan?" he whispered, and gently patted the boy's cheek where his head
rested on Lorican's shoulder. Shards, if they'd harmed him, he should
take the boy to the healers and worry about questions later. "Silgan,
can you hear me?"

The small child whimpered at the touch, mumbling. "mama...mama..." He
still lay limply in Lorican's arms, but his eyes fluttered while his
hand twitched against the chest he was nestled against.

"Lorican?" Rikol appeared from around a bend in the path, catching
sight of him. "I've been lookin' for ya. Da' wanted to know if you and
Lusilk wanted to come to dinner with us tonig..." The young
apprentice's words trailed off as his eyes widened. "Faranth! What
happened? Is that Silgan? You're hurt!" He turned. "Da! Come quick!
DA!"

Lorican felt a jolt of alarm, fearing that the scarred man might hear
the shouts. From what Lusilk had said, he wouldn't scruple to kill the
lad, too. But if she was injured, needed help...and it was clearly too
late to slip away unnoticed.

"Bandits. We'd gone for a walk together, they attacked us - I managed to
get Silgan away, but Lusilk..." He glanced over his shoulder, back
towards the woods. "I've got to go back for her."

Rikol continued to shout for his father, which brought Dunrik running
in alarm, the big man moving faster than it seemed possible
considering his size. He pulled up to a stop. Rikol fumbling over his
words, pointed to Lorican and Dunrik quickly stepped forward.
"Faranth, Lorican. The boy, is he alright?" He checked the boy even as
he took in Lorican's injuries. "You're not going back there alone,
lad. I know you love your woman, but you're hurt. You can't help her
like this. Rikol, get Silgan to the infirmary right now. Tell
Jayzine." The Mastersmith's normally serene face was set with icy
resolve. "Come on, Lorican."

Lorican placed the child gently in Rikol's arms, hoping he wasn't making
a terrible mistake and endangering the Mastersmith and his son, too.
Then he turned and began to follow Dunrik back along the trail he'd
left, towards the clearing. The back of his neck prickled as the trees
closed in around him. Every shadow seemed to conceal a dark figure,
every glint of moonlight seem to shine on the blade of a knife, and it
took every ounce of will he possessed to go on despite the growing dread
he felt.

Then, at last, he saw an opening ahead, the big skybroom silhouetted
against the sky. Stumbling forward, he saw the bodies, one crumpled a
little way off in a dark pool, the others together. The man lay with his
head resting on the woman's chest, his scar white against his bloodless
skin, and a knife buried deep in his heart.

"Lusilk!" He ran forward to kneel at her side.

The wail she'd uttered had sapped all of her remaining strength. By the
time they'd arrived, Lusilk barely held on to consciousness while still
holding Varlin close. Blood smeared her body, both her own and
Varlin's, and as she lay beside him, it was impossible to know just how
badly she was injured. Lorican's voice made her eyelids flutter open
weakly. "Silgan..."

Dunrik paled at the carnage and the evidence of fighting, his breath
exploding out of him. "Faranth..." He hurried after Lorican, his face
tinged with green at the sight of all of the blood. The two men were
obviously dead, but poor Lusilk... the was blood everywhere and she
looked far too pale. She was breathing at least, but for how long if
they didn't move her? He was no Healer, but even he knew that with that
amount of blood, there was little time to wait. "I've got her, lad. "
Without waiting for any further explanations, he knelt and gingerly
scooped her up in his arms. "We have to get her to the Healers. We'll
handle this scum later."

She moaned softly. "Varlin... wait..."

Lorican pulled off his ruined shirt, wincing as the stained fabric
ripped away from his wounded shoulder, and tore it in two. "Here." He
pressed the cleaner half to her side, where the bleeding seemed to be
the worst, as they started back towards the Weyr. "Don't try to talk.
We'll get you to the infirmary. Silgan's there. He's safe." He wondered
briefly at the unfamiliar name - the bandit's? - and then put it aside,
focusing on the task of bringing her back to the healers. "You're going
to be all right."

The sensation of being carried, the pain of it, brought a groan. A
tear trickled down from the corner of her eye, but not from the pain;
it was from the loss that she had suffered that no one else would ever
be able to understand. She tried to turn her head, to look back
before everything went black.

Last updated on the October 13th 2020

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