"Maia, I only want you not to forget me; ever. I can hardly believe this has really happened. I love you. I'll always love you. I want to marry you. But for now, I promise I won't forget you. You won't forget me, will you?"
"Forget you? What d'you mean? Why, I'll make love with you again tomorrow and the day after that and the day after that! Whenever you like. There's no question of forgetting you! Fit-"
He only shook his head, staring up at her. Filled with a sudden misgiving, she stopped.
"There is."
"Why?" He did not answer. "Why, Zenka, why?"
"Because I shan't be here."
"You mean-you mean-you mean the king's sending you away somewhere?"
"I ought not to be here as it is: I'm risking trouble for your sake."
Misunderstanding him-this fine young gentleman-the Tonildan peasant was suddenly angry, resentful. "Risking trouble? What, by making love to the likes of me, do you mean? Oh, you'd better go, then, hadn't you? Go on! Hurry up!"
"Oh, Maia, don't! Don't spoil it! That wasn't at all what I meant! If only you knew-"
"But I don't, do I? One moment you say you love me-"
He seemed utterly desperate. "You're entirely mistaken!"
"Am I? I don't reckon so. You said-"
"Oh, how can I
"Nobody?"
"D'you remember at supper I said you never knew what a man like Karnat might be going to do next? Well, what he's going to do now's just a little matter of defeating the entire Leopard army and conquering Bekla, that's all. At the captains' meeting-"
"Tonight-just now, do you mean?"
"Yes; yes! Listen, Maia, and I'll tell you. Then you'll understand what I meant by saying I ought not to be here. The plan's a masterpiece. It's based on two things. One is that Karnat'll have the help of Anda-Nokomis's Subans, which makes his army about one and a half times bigger than the Leopards think it is: and the other is that although the Leopards think the Valderra can't be crossed below Rallur, we know a place where it can be-just. Only just, but that'll be enough."
"But how can your king be sure the Leopards don't know? P'raps he's not as clever as you think."
"Oh, yes, he is. Since Sencho was killed their spy network's fallen to pieces. We know that. Sencho used to keep everything in his own head, you see, to make sure that he stayed in power and Durakkon and Kembri couldn't do without him. Since his death, all his agents have been at sixes and sevens. He was the only one who knew who some of them were, even. But as well as that, we've stopped anyone leaving Suba for the last month and more.
"The ford-well, you can't call it a ford, really-the crossing-place-it's about two miles below Rallur. The Beklans have got a bridge across the Olmen at Rallur, but they've got no outposts downstream at all, except for three hundred Tonildans on their own, all of two miles downstream from where we shall be crossing. Above Rallur, of course, they've covered every single ford. That's a good joke-we shan't be there!"
"You're sure of getting across, then?"
Her voice held little warmth, but his ardor and confidence took no account of this. He meant her to feel his own pride in the great victory in which he was about to take part. There would be no more doubt in her heart then.
"We've got Ortelgan ropes, brought here secretly. An advance party under the king himself will reach the ford about midnight. I shall be one of those with him. He's going to wade across with the first rope himself, and even he'll be up to his neck-over his ears in places, probably. Then we'll get two more ropes across. After that, we reckon the best part of a thousand men will be able to cross in an hour. They'll go straight upstream and destroy the Olmen bridge-it's only rough timber, of course. Then they'll stay there to stop the Beklans getting over the Olmen while the rest of the army crosses the Valderra. Even allowing for accidents, everyone should easily be across by mid-day tomorrow. By that time the Tonildan outpost downstream will have been completely destroyed-cut to pieces-and we'll go hell for leather for Bekla. The Leopard army will follow us, of course, but we can deal with that. We won't have to fight our way through them to get to Bekla, that's the point. It's sheer genius!"
