Chapter 90 The Spear

Chapter 90 The Spear
That night, exhaustion overcame the Assassins, and they fell into a deep slumber as soon as they went to bed. Sometime early in the morning, though, Ra'Jeem found himself wide awake. He turned on his side and watched Zorrik's chest rise and fall. His hair spilled over the pillow, and his pendant sat gently in the middle of his chest. Ra'Jeem reached over and lightly touched it.

"Zorrik," he said softly. When his Master stirred but didn't wake, he chuckled. "Some Assassin you are."

Zorrik grunted and opened his eyes. "What?" he said, his voice thick with sleep. He blinked a few times, thinking there was something wrong. "What is it?"

Ra'Jeem shook his head. "I just wanted...I'm sorry it took me so long to see what you saw."

His Mate smiled fondly. "It's okay. I turned your whole life upside down. I can understand how it might take a minute to process that."

Ra'Jeem nodded, but his eyes were full of tears. "I feel like I could have lost you, though. I can't imagine what my life would be without you."

Zorrik put his hand on his Disciple's cheek and shook his head emphatically. "You'll never lose me. Trust me, this hasn't been easy for me, either. I didn't want to believe everything we've learned."

Ra'Jeem leaned down and pressed his lips against Zorrik's, and soon both of their faces were wet from his tears. As they kissed, his hand gently slid down his Mate's chest, glancing off his collar bone, and then his muscular bicep. He felt Zorrik hiss into their kiss as his hand lightly danced off the wound he'd received in the battle. He moved his hand back up to his Mate's chest, and he traced the scar his old friend had given him.

Zorrik moved his head, tears forming in his eyes now too. He looked away and took a deep breath.

"I miss him too," Ra'Jeem whispered. When his Master looked back, he smiled gently and ran a hand through his long, steel gray hair.

They kissed again and then slowly slipped off each other's pants. Ra'Jeem moved his mouth over to Zorrik's jaw, nipping along it, until he reached the man's neck. Then he began making his way down, planting kisses all along Zorrik's body. He could feel his Master responding, and they were just about ready to go further, when the door to their quarters suddenly burst open.

"What the hell?" Zorrik yelled as Ra'Jeem quickly threw the blanket over the two of them.

"Oh my god!" Perrin cried out. "I am so sorry. I was just anxious to get going, and I came over to see if the two of you were ready."

"Get out!" Zorrik growled.

"Right," Perrin squeaked and started to rush away.

"Shut the door!" Ra'Jeem and Zorrik yelled together.

The young man shut the door so hard that the small cabin shook. After a moment, the two Assassins started laughing and didn't stop until they had to, so they could catch their breath.

"I guess this is what it's like having kids," Ra'Jeem quipped.

Zorrik just groaned, but his Disciple cut him off by kissing him again.

Half an hour later, the sun was up, and the two Assassins were dressed and gathering up their packs for the trip. They'd packed their robes, but for now, they were in the leather and fur clothing of the North. Spring had come, but the wind was still cold, and they'd be exposed out on the moors. As they started to walk out the door, Zorrik stopped and looked at Jefor's spear. For a moment, he just stared at it. Then, he grabbed it and followed Ra'Jeem outside.

Perrin was waiting for them at the dining area. When he saw them, his face turned bright red, and he turned away. When the two Assassins walked up to him, Ra'Jeem slapped him on the back, hard enough that the young man stumbled.

"Have you eaten?" Zorrik asked.

Perrin nodded. "I got some fruit and bread for you too."

"Good, because we aren't taking much. Meals might get a little slim from now on." Zorrik hesitated for a moment and then held Jefor's spear out to the young man, who stared at it in confusion.

"Jefor's spear?" he breathed. "I can't take this."

"You're going to need a weapon, kid."

"You didn't send it with him," Perrin stated, still in shock.

Zorrik grimaced. He knew he should have burned the spear on his friend's funeral pyre, but he couldn't bring himself to. He patted the young man on the back and nodded, his voice too thick to answer.

"Don't worry," Ra'Jeem added. "We'll teach you how to use it."

"Thank you," he said in awe, and finally took the spear in his hands. The weapon was taller than him and heavy, and he wasn't sure he'd ever figure out how to wield it.

The Assassins said goodbye to their people and talked to Caldan and Eloria one last time about their plans. They knew what to do if Zorrik and Ra'Jeem weren't back soon. Then the Assassins followed Perrin out onto another road through the moor. This one was barely a road, though. It was drier than the moor itself, but overgrown with grass and other plants. If they hadn't known about it, they wouldn't have thought there was a road there at all.

Zorrik and Ra'Jeem could hardly believe that the wind was even stronger than it had been when they travelled up from Alambra. Their only consolation was that the temperatures were a little warmer now. For the first two days, they trudged through the grey-green grass, following the map Perrin had been given. There was very little to see, other than the hint of mountains in the distance. And then the rains came.

Luckily, Perrin's pack held a thin animal hide they could use as a makeshift lean-to, and both he and the Assassins were adept at quickly setting it up. It was barely big enough to shelter the three of them, but they set it up next to a rocky hill to better help protect them from the wind.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think I preferred the snow," Zorrik commented as they tried to get a fire going on the soaked ground.