“Most certainly, completely and utterly.”
“What about the experience? After some of the things I’ve been through, I still have nightmares. What she went through must have been even worse.”
The ring laughed. “No, once again, they aren’t like us. They don’t change. They don’t scar, mentally or emotionally. Sure, they feel physical pain, but it doesn’t affect them the same way it does us. After she recovers, the only thing she’ll care about is getting revenge, but even that won’t be personal for her. Everything is a game to them, including torture.”
Will nodded. He had left the main campus gate and was now walking down the lane, but even as light as she was, Tailtiu’s body was becoming heavy in his arms, and he still had to walk through the city and several miles into the countryside to reach the nearest congruence. “I’ll talk to you some more in a little while,” he said, dismissing the limnthal. He could hear a carriage approaching from farther down the road.
It appeared a moment later, a carriage drawn by four horses, its lanterns glowing with amber light as they swayed from their hooks at the front. Will moved into the center of the road, making sure the driver could see him clearly.
“Get out of the way, fool!” yelled the man, slowing and pulling on the reins to stop the team.
Will remained still, and once the wheels had stopped, he walked forward, and with a quick source-link, paralyzed the driver. He formed a sleep spell while listening to the occupants ask questions, unsure why they had stopped. After a minute one of them opened the door, and Will was waiting. His spell put the two men and their female companion to sleep almost instantly.
Stepping up, he settled Tailtiu on one cushioned bench, though he was forced to put one of the men on the floor. Then he closed the carriage door and climbed up beside the still-paralyzed driver. “I need you to take a short detour for me,” he told the silently terrified man. “Don’t worry. I have no intention of hurting you or your master. I just need a ride. Once we get there you can take the carriage and leave.
“In a moment I’m going to release the spell holding you. If you behave and drive for me I won’t have to put it back on you, since I’m sure you’re a much better driver than I am.” He released the spell and watched the man carefully. “You can move now.”
The poor driver was too frightened to look in his direction. “Yes, sir.”
“Will you drive for me?”
The man nodded. “Yes, sir. You won’t hurt me, will you?”
“Not at all. I’m on the king’s business. This is merely an emergency.”
“Where are you headed?”
“The south gate and then a couple of miles out of the city. You’ll have to turn the carriage and team around. My lady friend can’t walk on her own, and she needs to be there as soon as possible.” The driver nodded and began the process. It was a narrow lane so turning the carriage in the middle of the road was a little tedious. While he did so, Will said one thing more. “Aislinn, Aislinn, Aislinn, thrice called, heed me for your daughter’s sake.”
“Beggin’ your pardon, sir?”
“Just ignore that,” said Will. They rode quietly through the mostly empty streets of Cerria. The driver behaved himself for the most part, though Will noticed a few wild glances when they passed through an area with more people. “I wouldn’t if I were you,” he warned.
The man gulped, and Will felt bad for scaring him. “What did you do to Master Haldane?”
“He’s sleeping, as are the others. They’ll wake up none the worse after you drop us off. I know you don’t believe me, but this is the king’s business. I have no intention of harming honest citizens.”
The driver seemed to relax slightly. “Are you one of the Driven?”
Will wasn’t sure how to answer that. “No, but I’ve met several of them,” he said honestly. “Why would you think that?”
“I’ve heard they wear drab colors and that they’re all sorcerers. They scare the shit out of most people. You’re wearing brown and you scare the shit out of me; it seemed reasonable you might be one of them.”
He fought to suppress a chuckle. “I appreciate the honesty and I’m sorry for all this, truly I am.” Something about his answer upset the man, and he saw silent tears begin to stream down the fellow’s cheeks. “What’s wrong?”
A half-sob escaped the man’s lips. “You’re goin’ to kill me, aren’t you, sir?”
“What? No! Why?”
“They always apologize in the stories, right before they murder them!” The driver’s words came out in a rush as snot began to run from his nose.
Will was beginning to worry that the hysterical man would lose control of the team. “Look, what’s your name?”
“Paul,” sobbed the man. “I have two children waiting for me at home. We lost their mother a few years ago.”
“Listen, Paul, would I ask for your name if I planned to murder you?”
The driver’s answer came out in a pitch so high it was difficult to understand. “Maybe.”
He summoned his coin pouch and removed a gold mark, then offered it to the man. “Would I offer you this to make it up to you for all the trouble?”
“You could always take it back after you kill me,” blubbered the pitiful coachman. They were about to pass through the south gate, and the look of desperation on the man’s face was so intense that Will worried the driver might throw himself out of his seat.
Will reconnected the source-link and paralyzed the driver while putting an arm over the man’s shoulder to keep him from being bounced out of his seat. With his other hand he took the reins and tried not to do anything. The team was following the road out of habit, and the road went where he needed to go. He had never driven anything larger than a small cart, and he worried what would happen if anything unexpected happened.
Meanwhile he spoke to the paralyzed man beside him. “Damn, I can’t fault your logic. I mean, I’m not going to do anything to you, but I can’t argue with your reasoning. There’s no way you can know what I’ll do, and you certainly don’t have cause to believe me, but we’re almost there. I’ll release you in a few minutes and you can turn the carriage around. You can keep the gold mark too, and your master doesn’t have to know I gave it to you if you don’t want him to know. He’s asleep, so that will be our little secret.”
A few minutes later, he did as he had promised, waving to the frightened driver as he drove away. “Don’t forget to wake up your passengers!” Will yelled. “Otherwise they might sleep until dawn!”