by Drew Wagar
Tasha bowed and Kiri did likewise. Both dropped into a ready stance according to the patterns they had learnt.
Tasha moved immediately towards her with a succession of swings of the kai. Kiri successfully blocked them, but lost ground and retreated across the hall. Tasha stopped and waited. Joyce and Jessie were slowly tracing the patterns with each other, clumsily moving back and forth together without trying to improvise, clearly not wanting to endanger each other.
‘Kiri, hold your ground!’ Charis called.
Kiri bowed quickly to Charis and resumed her position.
Tasha came at her again and she blocked, ducking and using one of the step-stepping moves Charis had shown them earlier. Tasha blocked this in turn and they traded blows in a fluid and balletic way.
Both managed to score against each other, light taps against their clothes that went unblocked. Kiri had lost, but she had managed to claim one score against Tasha.
There was thump and a yell of pain from beside them. Rihanna had somehow managed to make Sahria fall to the floor. She’d fallen clumsily and winded herself. She got to her feet, crying with shock and surprise.
‘Stop!’ Charis called and went over to them to see what had happened, helping Sahria to her feet.
Rihanna immediately stepped back. Kiri was sure she caught a smirk.
We should change partners,’ Merrin called out. ‘Sahria needs a more measured opponent and Rihanna would do best against someone of similar height.’
Kiri saw a faint smile touch Nerina’s lips as she looked at Merrin. ‘Perhaps the new girl?’
Charis looked at Kiri. Her face was full of concern. Kiri ignored the look, tossed her hair and stepped forward.
I’m not scared of her!
‘Change partners,’ Charis called. ‘Tasha with Sahria. Rihanna and Kiri.’
Tasha moved to her right and Kiri found herself face to face with Rihanna. Rihanna was grinning. She raised her chin, looking down her nose at Kiri. Kiri could see Nerina and Merrin watching intently from behind Rihanna. She tried to ignore them, focusing on the girl before her.
‘Bow,’ Charis called.
Kiri bowed, but noticed Rihanna’s bow was half hearted at best.
‘Begin,’ Charis’ second command echoed out.
Kiri dropped into a ready stance. Rihanna came forward with an abrupt powerful strike. Kiri parried, but the stroke went wide. Rihanna had twisted as she struck, her kai undercutting Kiri’s by a hands width. It swept down, hitting Kiri’s ankle with a sharp thwack. Kiri immediately found herself spread-eagled on the floor, her right ankle throbbing with pain.
‘Stop!’ Charis called. ‘Rihanna, only today’s ritual moves! No sweeping or moves from the next degree.’
‘My apologies,’ Rihanna said, keeping her eyes locked on Kiri, her gaze intimidating and intense.
‘You did that deliberately!’ Kiri hissed under her breath, climbing back to her feet, limping slightly.
‘And what are you going to do about it, slum?’ Rihanna grinned. ‘Cry like soft little Sahria?’
‘You wish,’ Kiri snapped and adopted her stance again, warily watching Rihanna.
‘You’ll never be a warrior,’ Rihanna said.
‘I don’t want to be a warrior. I want to be healer,’ Kiri countered.
‘Thought you were weak, there’s proof …’
Charis voice interrupted them ‘Bow. Begin.’
Neither of them bowed this time. Kiri moved quickly forward, striking as she had been instructed. Rihanna blocked her easily, twisted aside and then caught Kiri viciously between the shoulder blades with her kai. Kiri yelped in pain as she was knocked to the floor again. She propped herself up on her hands, painfully sitting up.
If you won’t play by the rules, then neither will I …
Kiri got to her knees, panting with the exertion.
Charis strode across, furious. ‘Rihanna, I said no contact!’
‘It wasn’t my fault,’ Rihanna said plaintively. ‘She moved in too close, she caught my block. I’m sorry, I thought she would know …’
‘This is not acceptable,’ Charis said, angrily gesturing towards Nerina and Merrin. ‘If they cannot …’
‘Three scores is the rule,’ Nerina said. ‘As tradition and rules dictate.’
Merrin’s face was a mask of sadistic pleasure. Charis’ hands clenched for a moment, before she regained control. She turned her attention to Kiri, helping her to her feet.
‘Can you continue?’
‘I’m fine,’ Kiri snapped, not taking her eyes off Rihanna.
Tasha and Sahria had finished their practice with each other with Tasha taking three easy scores against the smaller blonde girl. No one was watching them. All eyes were on Kiri and Rihanna.
‘Two scores for Rihanna,’ Charis said. ‘Last score. Bow.’
Rihanna paced around, twirling her kai whilst staring at Kiri before giving the briefest of bows. Kiri stayed still, watching carefully.
Forget the rules, just fight!
The other four candids were now watching keenly. Rihanna struck out with a blindingly fast strike to the midriff. Kiri stepped back, off balance and nearly fell, but managed to regain her footing before another strike arrived. She thought less about what she was doing and acted from instinct. She parried and struck, forcing Rihanna to take a step back herself. Kiri struck again, bringing herself close to Rihanna, their kais locked together. They strained for a moment, each trying to unbalance the other.
‘Give it up slum, you don’t belong here,’ Rihanna snapped in her ear.
‘You’ll leave first,’ Kiri fired back.
‘You won’t be a healer, but you will need one when I’m done with you!’ Rihanna said and then disengaged.
Anger flared, but Kiri found she could focus it. She channelled it forwards, the metallic feeling suffusing her body, pulsating like a live thing. She reached out …
Like a physical blow she found her ephemeral attack blocked. She felt a wall, a zone like a gulf around Rihanna, she could find no way across …
How dare you touch me!
Feelings of outrage and indignation came back to her across the invisible link.
Rihanna can do this too!
Oh, there’s nothing special about you slum …
Smugness. Haughtiness. Superiority. A sense of utter entitlement … pride and arrogance …
See how you like it!
Abruptly the feeling changed, Kiri found an intolerable pressure building around her mind, crushing in from all directions, smothering her in an invisible but suffocating blanket. Instinctively she resisted, only to find Rihanna evading it and tightening her grip once more. Kiri panicked, unable to free herself.
Sharp glee and a feeling of fierce delight in tormenting and inflicting pain coursed around her. The grip on her tightened further. Memories surfaced unwillingly. Choso … Tia …
She’s trying to read my mind …!
I’ll peel your thoughts away like an over-ripe sweetbud, slum! You dared to play this game, now I’ll teach you a lesson …
The pain was intolerable, but Kiri was no stranger to pain. Furious at the violation, Kiri sidestepped in her mind and then allowed the long memories of injustice she had suffered in her short life to blend into a concentrated icy hatred. Cold and calculating, she unleashed it in sharp stabs of fury …
Surprise and a growing fear burst back. The pressure crumbled and fell apart. Kiri’s mind burst free.
No! How did you …?
Rihanna abruptly disengaged. The mental link snapped and the world came into focus around them.
Kiri stepped back quickly as Rihanna lurched towards her off balance. Kiri then deliberately brought the end of her kai down as hard as she could, stamping it down on Rihanna’s outstretched foot. Rihanna cried out in surprise and fell back. Kiri brought her kai around, striking Rihanna in the shins, knocking her legs out from under her. As she fell forward Kiri bought her fist around under Rihanna’s chin. Kiri heard an
d felt the girl’s teeth snap shut. Rihanna went down hard, falling on her back with a cry.
Kiri looked up and saw Merrin’s face contort in anger. Shouts and gestures followed, but Kiri ignored them when she caught the briefest of smiles from Nerina, before the pale woman turned and walked away. Merrin was in full flow.
‘Outrageous! She’s out of control. How dare she attack another candid in that way …’
‘She doesn’t know the rules …’
‘Ignorance is no excuse!’
Kiri was wrestled back to her immediate surroundings by a firm pull from Charis.
‘Stop it! Both of you!’ Charis raised her voice in anger, stepping between them and snatching away their kais. ‘This is a peaceful art! If you two will not obey instructions I will have you censured. A stretch of hard labour in the sewers, do I make myself clear?’
‘She should be cast out immediately,’ Merrin shouted. ‘Fighting like a common brawler!’
‘Merrin, enough.’ Charis stared her down until she subsided.
Kiri nodded meekly as Rihanna climbed to her feet. She looked as if she was going to attack Kiri again, her face suffused with rage, but Charis was standing between them.
‘Shake hands as friends, now.’
‘She used the seeing …’ Rihanna began. ‘She should be punished! It’s the law, I was only defending myself.’
‘She was only following your poor example, breaking the rules!’ Charis retorted. ‘Enough, shake.’
Kiri slowly stretched out her hand, Rihanna grabbed it and squeezed hard, her fingers clamping down into Kiri’s bones. Kiri refused to flinch at the pain, forcing her own fingers to crush back.
Next time, slum, next time …
The tides of revenge and animosity were clear, sharp and bitter. Kiri didn’t answer, contenting herself with a wall of stony silence.
‘Better,’ Charis said, apparently satisfied. ‘Now go.’
She handed their kais to them and directed Rihanna to the other candids. Kiri felt Charis’ hand upon her shoulder.
You used the seeing didn’t you?
Kiri didn’t respond, but she couldn’t hide the guilty feeling she instantly felt.
Kiri, you mustn’t! It is forbidden. It is forgivable that you didn’t know, but as an acolyte … Promise me you’ll never do that again.
Fear and worry suffused the words. Kiri shut herself away from it.
Promise!
Why? She deserved it!
Kiri, it is punishable by death, whatever you do, never use the seeing to attack someone. Promise me!
Kiri clamped down on her thoughts, focusing an air of grudging acceptance.
All right, I promise!
She waited until Charis let go of her before letting her own thoughts run on.
‘Now bow and stay out of trouble!’ Charis was smiling, but Kiri could tell it was forced.
She bowed and turned away, wincing as she hobbled across to the side of the hall. Her back hurt badly and her ankle was worse; she could see it was bright red and swollen. She could see that Rihanna was also limping and rubbing her jaw.
Flooring her was so satisfying!
Kiri grinned to herself, despite the pain. She looked up to see Tasha’s impassive face. Sahria was scowling at her. Jessie and Joyce looked antagonistic, but turned away the moment they made eye contact. She had no friends there.
The moment Charis wasn’t looking Rihanna headed towards Kiri. She walked past and whispered.
‘You’ll pay for that, slum. No one touches my mind, you’ve sullied me. You’ll pay. ’
‘You can try,’ Kiri responded with a careless laugh, turning to face her. ‘Just watch you don’t fall off a roof too.’
‘Leave her alone, Rihanna,’ Tasha said, stepping between them.
Kiri looked up in surprise. Rihanna glared, but said nothing further. After a pause she continued on, walking toward her mother who welcomed her with an unpleasant glare in Kiri’s direction.
‘I can fight for myself,’ Kiri snapped.
Tasha looked at her, a single eyebrow raised. ‘So I saw. You would make an excellent warrior.’
Kiri returned the look.
A warrior? I don’t want to be a warrior …
Stretches turned to rounds as Kiri acclimatised to life in the temple. Much of it was to her liking. Pootle ensured that her every need was catered for and she had privacy and solitude for the first time in her life. Charis began to teach her the rudiments of reading and writing and she made slow but steady progress.
Charis’ primary teaching had been in the crafts of healing. She had led Kiri through some of the techniques, even letting Kiri work alongside her treating the sick and injured in the halls of healing. Kiri enjoyed the work and many remarked on how well she undertook her chores. She learnt much about the points and places in the body that could relieve pain, the mixing of herbs and plants to make special broths. She found she could use her gift to sense where injuries had taken place. Charis had been delighted with her progress.
‘You will be a powerful healer,’ she had noted. ‘Your gift gives you great insight into the body and mind.’
One thing that had particularly stood out for Kiri was a chance to ride a dach with some of the emissaries. Her first flight had been a near disaster when she panicked and almost slipped from the harness, but like most things she quickly acclimatised to the techniques required and became a reasonably proficient flyer within a few passes. The exhilaration of soaring above the city appealed to her, even if the mundane activity of carrying the occasional message was dull in the extreme.
But it was the weapons training that continued to catch her interest. Charis had been teaching her more about the use of the kai, the bow and the sword. Kiri picked this up far more quickly, it came naturally to her. It remained mostly ritualistic, a series of moves and patterns that had the aim of aligning the powers of mind and body into a single flow of energy. Kiri found it peculiar, but the more she practiced, the more effective she found it. She often took time to herself to rehearse what she had been taught in one of the practice halls around the temple.
‘You study well,’ Charis said to her, as they were cleaning up after one of the healing sessions. ‘I have never seen someone learn so fast. People will expect you to become a warrior.’
Kiri shook her head, scrubbing at the laundry in the bowl before her. ‘I am decided, a healer is what I will be. There is enough death in the world. If I can stop some of it, so be it.’
Charis smiled at her determination. ‘Then why practice with the weapons so much?’
‘If you do not carry a sword, you can still be killed by one. How can I heal if I’m dead?’
Charis didn’t have an answer to that.
‘Tell me more about the history,’ Kiri prompted. ‘You told me about the Voren, but where did Drayden come from?’
‘Drayden is named after the first priestess,’ Charis told her. ‘Elena Drayden. It was she that recognised the power that women have and organised our gifts, refined them and laid down the precepts we now follow.’
‘She was a warrior too,’ Kiri said. ‘She defeated our enemies.’
‘It is true she fought,’ Charis said. ‘But two hundred rounds ago it was a time of darkness, when the corrupt and failing empire of Voren collapsed. She fought from necessity, trying to save our people from those who meant to destroy us. She succeeded. Our home land of Drayden is the result. You remember the elements?’
Kiri nodded. She’d memorised enough of them now, enough to know that Elena had founded the priestess-ship to preserve and foster those with the gift of the seeing, defeating their enemies. The stories were vague though, Kiri didn’t really understand who these enemies had been.
‘We do not fight today. We preserve what we have. We use the seeing for peace, for healing, communication and understanding. You’ve experienced this yourself.’
Kiri nodded again, looking at her hands in the bowl. The ministrations she’d received afte
r being injured had been remarkable. She could remember the sensations of well-being that had wrapped themselves around her scared and angry mind, calming and embracing her in warmth and comfort.
‘So why do Rihanna and Tasha train so hard? They fight!’
Charis sighed. ‘Yes, they do. You’ve seen them cut their hair in the manner of warriors of old.’
Kiri nodded with recognition. ‘Is that what it is? Why?’
‘To be able to fight better. Hair can be a nuisance when drawing a bow, so warriors cut their hair on the left side, so as not to interfere with their shooting.’
‘Oh …’ Kiri thought about it. ‘But Nerina does that too!’
‘Nerina sees a strong army as essential to keep the peace,’ Charis said. ‘She embraces the martial arts to ensure we can defend ourselves should the need arise. She takes them seriously – as we all should, the world remains a dangerous place. But she does not plan to use them aggressively. We have spoken long about this. Alas, Nerina is not yet in command of the army …’
‘What do you mean?’
Charis sighed, wringing out the linen and placing it on a drier.
‘Perhaps I have said too much …’
Kiri looked disappointed.
Charis laughed. ‘Your expressions! I trust you, Kiri, but do not repeat this. It is truth to say that our current high-priestess and some of the priestesses allow perhaps too much freedom in how to interpret the precepts. Rihanna is a good example of how an obsession with fighting takes us away from our purpose. Our training is not meant for war.’
‘So when Nerina takes over from Launa …’
‘That is not a given, however much people say it is. But yes, I hope she will control things with a firmer grip with more emphasis on healing and peace. This obsession with fighting that some of the candids have will be stopped. Fighting never solves anything, Kiri. Remember that well. Do not meet violence with violence.’
‘Easier said than done.’
Charis smiled. ‘Indeed. But you’re not in the slums now. This is civilisation and it must be protected and maintained. It is hard work and a lesson to be learnt, Kiri. Learn it well and it will keep you from harm.’
Kiri nodded, rinsing out the bowls and stacking them to dry.