Battle

Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't sue. Thank you.

Carsaib was awoken by voices outside his tent.

"What is it?" he asked Haeg.

Battle! Nika shouted.

"What?" Carsaib asked. He knew that he could still shoot an arrow, but would he be expected to fight with magic?

You have me. Remember? Igor put in.

Of course I remember, Carsaib said defensively.

Thank the gods, Igor muttered.

"Get ready, desert rat," Haeg shouted, throwing his clothes at him. Once again, Carsaib suffered the demoralization of being slower than an old man.

Desdemona flung open the tent door, ignoring the fact that the occupants were in the stages of getting dressed. Her normally loose hair was pulled back into what seemed to be a million little braids, but Carsaib was sure that it would be flying all over the place if it hadn't been.

"Carsaib, you're supposed to stay in the back with me and the rest of the younger ones. We take care of the wounded with Delia," the girl gasped out.

"Wait," Carsaib said. "Who are we fighting?"

"The Sarsgani," Desdemona replied.

Carsaib had heard of them once or twice. They were marauders, though they weren't nearly as infamous of the Heldrin.

"Hurry," she said. Carsaib glanced at Haeg, who was already dressed. The sorcerer put a hand on the girl's shoulder and said, "You take him. I'll do what Xenia tells me to do. Desert rat, listen to Igor."

Carsaib had stopped dressing when Desdemona had entered the tent. The girl stared at him curiously and then turned around. He finally finished clothing himself and ran out of the tent after her.

"Why can't we do anything?" Carsaib asked.

"We're too young," she replied. "Besides, you're only just learning."

"I have a familiar," he mumbled.

You're still incompetent, Igor muttered.

Carsaib made a face.
"What is it?" Desdemona asked. She stopped running.

"Keep running," he told her.
"What's wrong?" she repeated.

"My familiar thinks I'm incompetent," Carsaib muttered.

For some reason Desdemona found this funny.

"Come on," she said, starting to run again.

"I was going until you stopped," he grumbled under his breath.

They reached a large, black and white silken tent.

"This is the worship tent. We bring the wounded in to Delia and save the bodies of the dead," Desdemona explained. "If they die, we burn them tonight."
Carsaib nodded. It had always been a custom among the desert tribes that the body's be sent off properly so that their spirits could be reunited with their gods.

"So, have you ever done this before?" he asked.

"I've never had to get people from the field," Desdemona answered.

"It's starting!" one woman shouted.

"For Artemis!" one shouted.

"For Hecate!"

"And for the blood-thirsty Ares!"

"For the sisterhood and Harmony, our mother, fight!" Xenia shouted, her voice traveling above all others. Mounted astride her horse, who had its forelegs in the air, with her black hair pulled back so that it appeared to cover only one side of her head, and her face painted blue, she was sight who would invoke fear into the hearts of the men.

Carsaib saw Haeg riding beside her, looking every bit he fearsome old sorcerer.

"Get in here, Desdemona and apprentice of Haeg," a woman who was almost as old as Delia shouted.

"What do we do, Corinth?" Desdemona asked.

"Wait," the woman said. "Just wait for it to begin. Then I'll tell you what to do. The front lines will fall first. When I tell you, get the wounded, and leave the dead."

Carsaib looked at Desdemona as though to ask how it would be done.

"I'll need your help," she said quietly. "When the fighting moves back or forward, depending, I'm going to ride up from behind with you. You'll need to help me clear the way. Can your familiar help us with that?"
It's Igor, and yes, I can, the lizard spoke up.

"I am sorry for not asking for you name, Igor," Desdemona told him.

"It begins," Corinth whispered.

Carsaib turned and saw one of the men's archers fire an arrow into the shoulder of one of the Amazonian archers.

Xenia brought her hand down, and all but the wounded woman fired. Some of the arrows were deflected by the men's shields, but most found their mark.

The wounded woman rode into the front and brought her blade down on her attacker. He pulled her down from her horse even as she decapitated him. Another man surged forward and ran her through.

"Why didn't we get her?" Carsaib asked Desdemona.

The girl's mouth was open in surprise and horror at the sight, but she composed herself and said, "She continued, and she was not down. She did not wish to be rescued. Look. Already her death has been avenged. There was nothing that we could do. We would have shamed her if we'd come to her rescue." It sounded to the young sorcerer as though she were trying to defend what had just happened.

"Well, we couldn't have gotten to her anyway," Carsaib mumbled.

Corinth and Desdemona both glared at him as though he had said something wrong.

Never use incompetence as an excuse around these people. You're supposed to pretend that you can do anything and die trying to something that's stupidly impossible or not do it because it would shame another one of your "sisters," Igor mumbled.

Carsaib followed Desdemona's finger and saw Lara cut down Xenia cut down the Amazon's killer and ride straight through the men. Lara and another Amazon followed her, and the rest rode behind them.

Carsaib saw Haeg surge his own horse forward, sending Nika ahead of him. Her golden wings had sharpened, and she was dividing the men more quickly than even Xenia and Lara. Haeg himself was killing quickly.

"Get to the archers' lines," Corinth hissed.

Desdemona leapt onto her horse and pulled Carsaib up behind her.

"Hold on," she ordered. Carsaib did as he was told.

Let me off this stupid chain, Igor ordered.

Carsaib did so, and the lizard crawled over the ground.

Say, "Brisingr," idiot, Igor told him.

"Brisingr," Carsaib said. He felt Igor tug on his power and pull it towards himself. The lizard caught fire.

I'm going to need speed, Igor said as he burned in the sand.

"Hlaupa," Carsaib shouted as Desdemona's horse surged forward.

I'm impressed, Igor said. You actually knew what to do.

With that, the lizard raced through the line of horses, dividing all those near the wounded. The horses of those reared and fled farther up the lines, moving the battle itself away from them.

Carsaib stomach almost rebelled against him as they approached the wounded. One woman's stomach had been sliced open, and yet she was breathing.

"Kill me," she hissed.

Desdemona froze, unsure of what to do. Her hand went to her knife, and then she dropped it back.

"We'll help you," she said at last.

"Give me that dagger," the woman ordered. "It'll be over in a few minutes anyway. Don't waste space. Do it."

Desdemona took a deep breath and stabbed her dagger through the dying woman's heart.

The Amazon gasped, and her mouth opened. Her eyes were frozen open as she stared up at the sky.

"Rest in peace, sister Callisto," Desdemona whispered.

They continued to ride through the bodies, taking all of those who could be saved. One woman's throat had been slit to the point where her head was barely attached to her shoulders. He saw several men pierced with countless arrows or with their heads gone or crying out for help, for the death-mercy that nobody would give them.

Both Carsaib and Desdemona moved through the ranks of the wounded as Igor led them, and neither paused to think on it until they got back to the tent.

"You've never seen death eyes before, have you?" Desdemona asked him when they got back to the tent. Carsaib was silent. "I don't like them either."

"I have seen them," Carsaib said abruptly. "On my mother. When Rogerick…killed her. And some day, he'll look up at me, just like that woman did, but he won't grateful. He'll be shocked that he had to pay. I swear to the gods that he will."

The priestess Corinth looked up at him. "Desert-rat, men and women both have been swearing that for years. The queen now and the one before have too. Many have died because they swore that. It's not going to happen."

Carsaib simply closed his eyes and tried make the lifeless eyes in his head go away. But they wouldn't. Instead, he turned them into Rogerick's own mismatched ones.

Desdemona met his eyes, a puzzled look on her face, and startled him out of his reverie. He shook his head. He didn't need to see any death eyes, not even Rogerick's. Especially not when they looked so eerily like those of the girl standing in front of him.

So you don't want revenge? a voice asked.

Carsaib frowned.

Oh, you still do. Hm. I could help with that, the voice continued.

Leave him be! Igor barked.

Mm. I'm not unhappy with it, but I'm not happy with it. I am very disappointed in myself that I've been unable to update for this fic for so long. I seriously have no ideas for what to do before Carsaib becomes Durza. Please send me ideas for the upcoming chapters. I've also been very busy. Luckily, my vacation starts in about a week. Anyway, here are the review responses.

Weridness: Well, I finally did.

Amaruk Wolfheart: I'm glad that you like my familiars. They're fun for me too.

Anime Alchemist: Well, get confidence. Or whatever. The true form thing was just a random thing. I'm glad that it didn't ruin it.

Jedi Werecat: Yeah, I love Igor too. I love little bastards. I'm glad that you like my writing.

Vixen Hood: It was just a random idea. I'm glad that you like the familiars.

Rachel Pierce: Well, I always thought that the spirit who possessed him was Durza, but the other idea could work too. I'm glad that you like it. And Durza doesn't really possess a hawk. He's the spirit of a sorcerer who could turn into a hawk. And because he died as a hawk, he still is one. Sorry if that was a little confusing.

Queenmab: Thanks, Amy. And yes, I finally gave in to your nagging and updated.