“Listen, all you yanshyri. The commander has made us an offer.”
Sebezh snorted. “What kind of offer would he make? More work?”
Relio gave him a hard stare. “It seems the pirates have been raiding upriver, further than they’ve ever done. They plundered quite a few vineyards and orchards before the guardsmen ran them off.”
“So?” Sebezh laughed. “Unless the pirates are planning on getting into mining, what do we care?”
“The commander, like I said, has a proposal for us.” Relio shifted in his seat and looked around the barracks. “He’s raising volunteers, one hundred of them. Anyone who volunteers will go fight the pirates. If the pirates are defeated, then all the volunteers will be given their freedom.”
A chance to be free. Tereka’s breath caught and she held her head up. Who wouldn’t jump at it?
Naco furrowed his brow. “How can they free us if we’ve been taken?”
“They’ll send us to another part of the country where no one knows us. We’ll be given new names. If we leave the village where they put us, or tell anyone where we’ve been, our lives will be forfeit.”
The Prime Konamei, or whoever came up with this scheme, was taking a big risk that no one would talk. Or try to escape. Tereka wondered if it was a real offer.
“And if we lose?” Savinnia asked.
“The dead will be free. The survivors, if there are any, will be sent to the salt mines.” He closed his eyes. “Death would be better than that. They’ve given us until tomorrow morning to decide.”
The salt mines. Tereka gulped. The copper mines were bad enough, but scratching salt from the walls of underground tunnels was far worse. As the icy feeling in her hands spread to her chest, the room erupted into sound. Everyone began talking at once.
“I’m not going. Those pirates drink the blood of their enemies.”
“If they don’t kill you first, they’ll rip your heart out and eat it.”
“I heard they play with their captives, cut an ear off one day, a toe the next.”
“Ears and toes nothing. They cut your balls off and give them to their sons for their slingshots.”
Tereka’s knees went weak. She sat by the wall and leaned back against it, feeling the buzz of words flying around her head. Freedom. She could win her freedom. But if she left the camp, she’d lose her chance to find out if her mother was there. Unless she could ask before she left. Then she’d come back and rescue her later. She snorted. As if she’d be able to pull that off.
She pulled herself up and moved over to Relio. “If you please, one question.”
He nodded.
“What’s it like in the salt mines?”
“You don’t know what that means, do you?” Relio curled his lip and snorted. “The salt mines are nothing like this one. The miners are sent down and never come up.”
“Never?” She shuddered.
“Never. The prisoners send their quota up at the end of the day. If they make it, food is lowered down. The strong eat, the others starve. Once you go to the salt mines, you die there.” His gaze scraped Tereka’s face like a chisel on rock. “You’re not thinking of volunteering, are you?”
She didn’t answer.
“You are, you fool.” Relio curled his lip. “It’s certain death.”
Savinnia jumped to her feet. “You’re crazy to even think of volunteering. Sure, you can fight. But those pirates won’t let you within spitting distance. Or if they do, there won’t be anything left of you when they’re done.”
“If you have such a desire to be raped, I can help you out,” Relio said with a smirk. “And I promise not to hurt you.”
Tereka’s stomach rolled over. Naco put a hand on her shoulder. “I don’t think she’s so crazy.”
“What?” Tereka and Relio asked at the same time.
“We’re just withering away here. In another year we’ll be too weak to work. If we’re not injured first. Either way, that will be the end of us.” A muscle twitched in his jaw. “I’d rather try now, when I still have some strength left. There might not be another chance.”
“Thank you.” Tereka grabbed his hand. “I feel the same way.”
Relio fixed Tereka’s eyes with his own. “If you volunteer, I’ll send you to the back of the line again, and you won’t have my protection.”
Tereka closed her eyes. She had been making a life for herself, such as it was. Savinnia was a friend, and Naco and Alikse were allies of a sort. No. She shook her head and balled her shaking hands into fists. “I’m sorry, but I have to do this.” She looked straight at Relio. “And I agree with Naco. We might not have a better chance.” She swallowed hard. “Know that I will always be grateful for your help.”
Relio glared at her. Tereka felt more than ten heartbeats pound in her ears. He nodded. “Fine. Keep your position. And my protection. You won’t be able to enjoy them much longer. Just remember, before you make any deal, make sure whoever it’s with is going to keep their side of the bargain.” He drummed his fingers on his thighs. “You think long and hard what you’re going to do. About the pirates, and about your life here.”
After she stared at him for a moment, she dropped her gaze. He was just trying to scare her out of volunteering. She wasn’t going to let him intimidate her into backing down. Not when the tantalizing prospect of freedom beckoned. She’d pass it up only if she was sure it was hopeless. Which the twisting of her stomach told her it was.
46
Tereka crept over to her usual spot by the wall and rested her head on her knees. Now what? Thoughts spun in her mind like they were caught on a spinning wheel. Freedom. My mother. Relio.
Naco sat beside her. “It seems to me someone is looking out for you.”
“What do you mean?”
“This business with the pirates has Relio put out. Look at him.”
She studied Relio. Usually, he’d sprawl in his seat with Savinnia on his lap. Today he leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, staring at his hands. His lips moved as if he was talking to himself. She turned to Naco. “You mean, he’s not coming for me tonight?”
“I don’t think so. And he won’t throw you to me or Alikse,” Naco said. “No. Something is troubling him about this and he’s worried about it. Stay out of his sight, and he won’t bother with you. Now, let’s eat.”
Naco was right. Relio was preoccupied, his inner conflict palpable. She took a deep breath, her muscles relaxing. She had another day to solve the problem of Relio’s demands. Now if she could only resolve her other dilemma.
The next morning, Tereka stood in a line with the others from her barracks. All the prisoners had been marched down into the pit and lined up in rows facing the ramp. Guards with drawn swords stood around the hundreds of massed prisoners. Others with bows stood on the edge of the pit, arrows nocked and ready. They weren’t taking any chances with a mass break for freedom.
The commander stood at the top of the ramp. “I made you an offer.” His shouted words echoed off the walls of the pit. “It’s a good offer. Freedom, in exchange for a little work. We’ll give you weapons, supplies, all that you will need. My men will fight beside you, my lieutenant will lead you. Who wants to give this extra service to the Prime Konamei and earn his release?”
A few men stepped forward. The commandant motioned for them to ascend the ramp and stand just below him. “Any more? You will be well fed. We will resettle you in a village, give you work. Who else will answer the Prime Konamei’s call?”
Tereka shifted from one foot to the other. Relio’s words pricked her mind like the sting of a wasp, burning, irritating. Was he right? Was she a fool? She bit down on her tongue to keep from shouting. She’d been brooding all night. She had to try for freedom. She’d heard too many times her mother didn’t die for her to throw her life away. If her mother were still alive, she surely wouldn’t want Tereka to waste away chipping copper. After all, her mother had risked her own life to seize a chance for freedom.
And if t
hey lost to the pirates, so be it. At least she wouldn’t have to live out her dreary days as a prisoner’s toy.
She took a deep breath. Strong fingers dug into her arm. “Don’t. Do. It,” Relio hissed into her ear. “You’ll be sorry.”
He was right, she’d probably regret it. But she’d be sorrier if she didn’t try and spent her last few miserable months cursing herself for not having tried.
“We only have twenty.” The commander stalked back and forth in front of the prisoners. “Are all the rest of you cowards? Or fools? This is your best chance for freedom!”
A handful of men and one woman stepped forward.
“Just six more?” The commander spit into the dirt. “Maybe I should be clearer so you can get it through your thick skulls.” He walked to the side of the ramp, spun on his heel, and strode back to the center. “If one hundred of you don’t volunteer, we will take as many as we need.”
Fifteen men joined the group of volunteers. Tereka tried to take a step forward but Relio’s grip on her arm held her back.
The commander spat again. “We have less than forty. If I have to choose sixty, then sixty of those who are left will die. Instantly.”
Relio released his grip. “Well. I won’t stop you now.”
Tereka’s heart pounded as if it were a bird trying to escape a cage. Without looking at her fellow prisoners, she strode to stand with the other volunteers. A weight lifted from her mind. She’d made the right choice, she was sure of it. She turned to face the remaining prisoners.
Her eyes widened. Naco, Savinnia, Alikse, and Relio were walking toward her. Sebezh and a few others from their brigade followed. A lump formed in her throat. Her friends would be with her in this fight. Then Poales pushed his way forward.
When he reached her side, she grabbed his hand. “Why?”
“I couldn’t leave you to fight pirates by yourself, could I? Who knows them better than me?” His dark eyes held just a glimmer of humor.
“Better pick your fate than let it get dumped on you,” Relio said. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this, girly. I hope this isn’t as stupid as I think it is.”
47
Tereka trudged behind Poales to the top of the ramp. The guards lined them up near five open wagons and fastened iron shackles to each prisoner’s ankles and wrists.
A guard poked Tereka in the back. “You. Get in.”
She obeyed the guard’s command. A bench ran down each side of the wagon’s bed and she took a seat near the front, next to Poales. The guard picked up a chain attached to a bolt on the floor. He fed the chain through the rings on her ankle shackles. Savinnia sat on the other side of her. Once her feet were chained to Tereka’s, the guards roped their wrists together. Tereka watched dully as they did the same to eighteen more prisoners. She took a ragged breath. Now they were trapped.
Savinnia rested her head on Tereka’s shoulder. “Looks like we’re in for a ride.”
“I hope it’s a short one.” Tereka sighed. She forced herself to breathe slowly. What had she been thinking? This felt like they were going to another prison, not to fight pirates.
Guards on horseback lined up on either side of the wagons. One rode to the front. “Advance.” Tereka rocked with the motion of the wagon and turned her head to look at him. That must be the lieutenant.
The hours dragged as the wagon lumbered along the bumpy road. The wheels creaked and the horses’ hoofs pounded a dull cadence on the dirt road. Tereka’s nose itched and she coughed from the dust. She jostled between Savinnia and Poales, trying to doze in the heat and failing. Her hands trembled and a scream built in her throat. She had to stop thinking. Stop stewing on where they were going and what would happen when they got there. She closed her eyes and filled her mind with thoughts of her grandparents’ kitchen. Of sharing a meal with them and Da.
They traveled all that day and part of the next. The landscape never varied. All Tereka could see were puny hills, sere and dusty, relieved only by stunted scrub bushes. A solitary bird flew past.
Mid-morning, galloping hoofbeats approached. A guard rode up to the lieutenant and handed him a message. That could only mean the time for their battle was near. Tereka’s heart beat faster and prickles ran down her arms to her fingers.
Soon after, the wagons turned and headed down a slope. They halted on a hill overlooking a wide river. Tereka pressed her shaking hands between her thighs and stared into Savinnia’s wide eyes. She turned her face to take a deep breath over her shoulder, to breathe in the hot air, air that smelled of dust rather than the rancid wet spots on the barrack’s floor where they’d all relieved themselves in the night.
“Hurry up.” The guard tugged on the arm of the man closest to the end of the wagon. One by one, they were released from the bolts that held their ankles. They staggered out. Tereka’s stiff legs buckled under her and she fell onto Savinnia.
The guards lined them up in five rows, one for each wagonload. They distributed black bread, a chunk for each prisoner. They brought around a bucket and allowed each prisoner to drink a dipper full. As she waited her turn, Tereka looked around. The ground was rocky and dry, but not as dusty as around the mine. Dry golden grass waved in the breeze. Behind them were rolling hills covered with more scruffy grass, small bushes, and the occasional tree. She studied the river, tipping her head to the side. Was it the River Mirna, or the Selengu? The weather was so hot, they had to be in the south. The Selengu, then, or even the Isoturp.
The lieutenant blew a whistle. “Attention, prisoners. We will release your hands from your bonds and give you swords and shields. My guardsmen,” he pointed over his shoulder, “will be arranged behind your lines and on either side. Notice they are armed with bows as well as swords.” He pointed at the prisoners. “Any attempts to escape or attacks on the guards and the archers will shoot you. Do you understand?”
Like everyone around her, Tereka nodded. They were not going to risk a mutiny.
The lieutenant continued. “We have word the pirates have raided a village to the west of here. They’ve been working their way up the river and should be here very soon. We expect them to make landfall here, to mount their attack on the village over the hill behind you. When they arrive, you will stop them.”
Five of the guards advanced, one for each of the lines of prisoners. Tereka leaned forward to look at the man at the head of her line. The guard unlocked his shackles, then moved to the next. She bounced from foot to foot. Her wrists chafed under the heavy iron. Would he never get to her?
He unlocked Savinnia and moved to Tereka. She gasped when the iron fell from her wrists. She rubbed them, trying to ease the stiffness in her joints. Relio leaned toward her. “Listen, all of you.” Tereka huddled near him, along with the rest from her brigade. “We stay together and protect each other. Understood?” Only after everyone murmured their agreement did he continue. “I think we need to get in the back of the lines. Watch how the battle goes before we get into it. Right?”
Tereka narrowed her eyes. Relio suspects something. Her mouth went dry.
She shoved aside the thought as the guards distributed weapons and lined the prisoners up on the field. She grasped the heavy sword she’d been given. She didn’t think she could swing the thing, let alone hurt someone with it. Then she stood, sweating under the merciless sun. She closed her eyes and tried to imagine herself somewhere far away.
A shout roused her. A ship sailed around a bend of the river. Tereka’s breath came fast and shallow. The pirates had arrived.
The ship pulled close to the riverbank, small boats were lowered, boarded, and were quickly rowed to shore. Within a matter of heartbeats, the first pirates jumped out, leaping onto the grassy bank. They wore a haphazard mix of gray and brown clothing, most likely stolen from their victims, unsuspecting villagers or traders. A few, Tereka, noted, wore black leather tunics and carried swords. Which meant they must have killed armed guardsmen. This was not going to be an easy fight.
Nine more boats came ashor
e with eight or ten in each. About a hundred. Her stomach clenched. Relio was right to be suspicious. The pirates yelled and shook their bows. Then they nocked and released arrows, mowing down the prisoners in the first row.
“With me!” Relio ran to a low stone wall a few yards behind them. Tereka sped after him and vaulted lightly over it. Sweat dripped into her eyes. She wiped it away and peeked over the wall. The pirates had fallen back and were huddled around the one who seemed to be their leader, a man whose head towered over the rest. Six more boatloads landed on the shore. She looked around for the guardsmen. None were in sight.
The field before her was strewn with corpses, most of them prisoners. She started counting and lost track at forty. At most, they had fifty left. The pirates looked like they’d only lost about ten.
Crouching next to her, Relio raised his head. “Any sign of the guardsmen? Or that lieutenant—may he be trampled by warboars—who’s supposed to be leading us?”
She shook her head. A stone clattered near her feet and she jumped. She whirled around as a second stone hit her boot.
“Up here.”
Poales waved to her. She clambered a few yards up the slope and ducked behind another crumbling wall. He pointed to a spot off to the left. The twenty guards assigned to fight with them rode over a rise. They looked as fresh as when they rode out that morning.
“At last.” Tereka let out a breath. Now maybe they’d have a chance.
The lieutenant rode up to the pirate captain and saluted. They had a few words of conversation.
“What is he doing?” She tamped down the panic in her voice. “Negotiating a surrender?”
“I don’t know.” Poales shook his head.
Relio looked over the wall and cursed. He ran over to Tereka. “Kassils!” He let out a string of foul words. Tereka could only guess their meaning. Her jaw dropped. What had him so angry?
Two guardsmen joined the lieutenant and the pirate captain, their horses laden with large bundles. Two pirates approached, carrying smaller bundles. After the exchange was made, the captain and lieutenant saluted. The lieutenant turned his horse and rode back to his men.
Flicker of the Flame: A YA Epic Fantasy Page 26