His speech drew a quiet din of approval from the others still gathering. So much had their numbers grown that they must have approached the hundreds. She looked around the circle that had gathered around her and saw both fear and hopeful expectation. Clearly, they feared the army of darkness gathering outside of the keep walls. And clearly, they looked upon her with an expectation derived from their shared experience of being told to find, apparently, her.
There was a collective jump by the those gathered as the sounds of battle began, but Soliana remained calm. She had years of battle in her experiences and well knew the difference between sounds far off and those close by. Resolved to accomplish the task set upon her by Eriboth, not for him, but for those he put in her charge, she looked to the leader and asked, "Where is the rear gate? There must be one."
"What are your plans? Surely, we cannot leave our homes," said the man as he looked around for confirmation.
Soliana saw the eyes of the people giving her pause, not because of their fear or will to survive, but because of their collective unwillingness to leave their homes. Wordlessly, she walked through the crowd as they readily parted for her. Some of them protested, thinking she was leaving them and rejecting the validity of their dreams. Others followed her thinking she was leading them to wherever they needed to go inside their city to remain safe. But she was doing neither. She knew. She knew they would never leave, at least, not without a little nudging. So, she looked around and found that which she sought, a bench upon which she could stand.
After she jumped up, the gathered people waited and watched for her to speak, "For whatever reason, and by whatever power, you find yourselves following me. To what purpose, I cannot answer. There is a dark army amassed outside of our walls, I cannot speak to the means they employed to arrive here, but I can speak of their purpose. They will seek to steal, kill, and destroy what life you have now. I can tell you this, though the Stone Keep has never fallen, and even though its people and soldiers are amongst the strongest in the land, it will fail. This army is one that cannot be stood against with the hope of victory for they do not act as other mortals act. They do not fight as other mortals fight and they will not grant the clemency other mortals grant. They will win and your lives will be forever changed, if not lost," she paused to allow the finality of her words to sink into their hearts. "But there is a hope. Clearly, there is something, someone, some entity at work behind all that we face attempting to provide a reprieve from the awaiting doom. But doom is exactly what you will face, as will your families, if you do not abandon your understanding that home is rooted only to any specific place, because there is nothing to a home that any house, city, and land can provide apart from its physical dwelling. Is a home not more than that? Is it not defined by the very memories you have? And can those memories not be forged elsewhere?" When she paused this time, she knew she had opened their hearts to the idea of leaving the Stone Keep.
"I can see your hearts opening. This is the leadership you will support if you choose to follow me. It will be the leadership that will see your lives flourish elsewhere. For the Stone Keep will fall and you will be enslaved to whatever demands are placed upon you by the victors. Gather what you can, only the necessities. We leave when the sun dial shows half again the hour. If you are not here, we will not wait."
But the gathered people did not depart to see to their last tasks as citizens of The Stone Keep. Instead, they looked around amongst themselves, some muttering to themselves under their breaths and others speaking in hushed tones to each other. There was nothing more Soliana could say. She had said everything she believed they needed to hear, but they still did not leave.
"What are you doing?" said a strong voice from the crowd. Even from her elevated position, Soliana was unable to see who had been its creator. "Did you not hear her and was she not the woman in your dreams? And yet, you are still standing here. I choose to live; therefore, I choose to leave." And just like that, the crowd ended its mutterings, slowly taking action. With each passing second, the acceleration of their movements seemed to grow until she could see the majority of them walking quickly if not running to accomplish her directive.
She looked to the sky, the sun still hanging onto the last string holding it attached to a divine existence and saw what she should have considered to be a beautiful evening. But when set against the growing progression of an evil so unspeakable it threatened the very soul of man, all things, regardless of their innate splendor, became nothing more than a cruel reminder of what may never be again. It was in moments like this that she thought of her son, Torrick. Would she even recognize him if she ever saw him again? And while she liked to believe in an eternal bond between mother and son birthed from the very nature of life, she could not confirm her hopes with any amount of validity. Not because she doubted the strength of her eternal love for him, but because she doubted any existence of a divine inspiration to that love. True, even though the rising of Eriboth had proven a greater aspect of life than the flesh and blood of mortality, she still could not reconcile her past with the cruel lingering of her present; and at present, she dearly missed her son.
Torrick. Who was he? Was he well? Had he experienced all the goodness life could offer? Did he feel loved? These were but a few of the endless questions seeking residence in her consciousness on a constant basis. Regardless of how well she was able to focus on her task driven goals, regardless of how adept she had become at repressing all of her sadness and guilt, and regardless of how much she had successfully forged a new identity for herself apart from the painful memory of leaving him, the presence of those unknown answers that all mothers should always know, were always there. In the background of her intent, they were always present and would always be present because such was her love for her son. It would never end.
But the infinity of her love and all things considered therein would have to wait, for returning to her location were the beginnings of who would become her refugees; that is, if they could successfully leave the Stone Keep. First to return was the spokesperson for the initial group of ten. He was accompanied by a woman and young girl. Next to return were some families, some of which had filled the better portion of their belongings into wagon carts. One of them even had their carts strapped to two horses. She cautioned them that carts would only slow them down, and in the event of being chased, their chances for avoiding capture would be reduced if they were still rooted to their personal belongings. However, she did not refuse them the right to bring what they wanted. After all, there was no time to inspect each and every person's personal belongings. Time was short and their opportunity for successful escape was growing shorter with every second they waited.
"What way do you propose to leave the city?" asked the spokesperson.
"What is your name?" she asked in response.
"Dregor, m'lady. Dregor Yule. I am a fabric specialist. This is my wife, Linsia, and our daughter Nithana," he said as he lifted his daughter up to better see Soliana.
"Is this the woman who will save us, Drahin?" asked the little girl.
"I believe she is," he said as he affectionately pushed a lock of her blonde hair out of her eyes.
"She has hair like mine!" the young girl exclaimed excitedly.
"That she does, Eklirin," he said as he set her back down. "But now is not the time for it, we must leave and I must set you down."
"Ok, Drahin," said the girl as she walked back to the gentle embrace of her mother. "Did you see, Drashin? She has hair just like mine!"
Soliana could not help herself from forming the beginnings of tears at seeing the excitement of the little girl. But she quickly subdued her initial response and turned to address Dregor, "Dregor, what is the best way out of the city? Does it have a rear gate or another exit large enough for our numbers?
"It does indeed. The rear gate will be large enough for us. But I do not think they will readily open it to allow us to leave. There has been an order passed for all people to stay within their
homes," he said.
"Then we will just have to find a way to convince them to allow our exit. We should leave soon," she said. Looking around she estimated their numbers to be nearly three fourths of that which was present when she addressed them. More were returning, but she did not think everyone would. However, over the next five minutes, she saw their numbers grow to about half again larger than her initial estimation. When she looked to Dregor and nodded her head, he turned and loudly said, "It is time."
They were relatively unimpeded as they walked through the town to the rear gate, to each of their surprises, because of the imposed directive that all remain in their homes until the all clear. All of the guards and militia they saw were very preoccupied with either bolstering the forces along the walls, or searching the streets for the assassins, and while Soliana was most beneficial in direct battle, and was predisposed to join either of those forces, she admonished her natural intent to better serve her civilian charge. But the urge to join in the defense of the city was powerfully present.
As they approached the rear gate, after walking through the twists and turns of the city, Dregor walked up next to her and said, "I hope you have a plan to get beyond the gates. They have not moved to unbar it, nor have they begun the process to engage the winches on either side."
"To be honest, Dregor, I had not thought of anything yet. I truly hope your dream can be believed, because if it cannot, then I do not know what we will do," she said as she looked gravely to him.
Before Soliana had the chance to personally approach the guards, one of them shouted from the bridge above "What is the meaning of this?"
Stepping forward, she answered his inquiry, "I am Soliana Solaris, and I represent those citizens who have chosen to seek refuge until this army is defeated. We are here to request the gate to be opened and allowance be granted for our passage."
"Are you aware that there is an imposed curfew including a restriction to residences?" the guard asked haughtily.
"Yes, we are aware. But we come with the gravest of requests and humble pleading that the imposition be overlooked," she said strongly.
"Under whose authority do you ask this?" he asked.
Soliana had no answer to his question. What was she supposed to say? Under the authority of a barely known God based on the dreams of random citizens and at the behest of an outlawed legend who had recently returned from the dead did not sound like the answer that would elicit a response remotely close to beginning the process for the gates to be opened. But in truth, that was all she had, and all she could say. She looked to Dregor and then to the others behind him, all waiting for her to answer. She looked to the other guards and then back to their leader, but when an answer failed her, she was about plead for their mercy and understanding when she heard a strong voice from the crowd say, "Authority is a funny thing, is it not Captain Belecin?"
She recognized it as the same voice that spoke up after her speech. Instantly, she turned to identify its source and saw a lean man stepping forward from the gathered throng. He wore loose fitting black breaches bound by leather straps running the length of their sides and a loose fitting pale green tunic tucked in at the waist. Over the tunic, he wore a dark grey, leather doublet fastened in the front with metal clasps. He was slightly taller than she was, but not tall for a man. Yet neither was he short. Hanging at this belt was a thin rapier held by a frog styled sheath.
Looking down at the lean man, Captain Belecin squinted his eyes and paused as if considering outcomes for several different actions. In return, and seeing his hesitation, the guards looked back and forth between the captain and the man, "Indeed it is."
"Then you understand that authority is nothing more than illusion, Captain," the lean man said as he continued to walk and stand beside Soliana.
"Yes, it has recently been made very apparent to me that it is," he said as he was still weighing his options, obviously torn between two equal and opposite forces.
"So, tell me, Captain Belecin, which illusion do you wish to maintain?" said the man with a voice laced with intent.
"You understand that if I open the gate, it is done. There will be no more illusions. And once this dark army falls on the walls of The Stone Keep, Lord Myosk will have my position," said the captain.
"I am perfectly capable of extrapolating the consequences. But then again, they are not my consequences, but your own. Yet I would urge you to think of the consequences that would befall you should the gate remain closed," he said as he lightly touched the hilt of his thin rapier drawing a reciprocated response from the guards.
"You need not remind me of those. I am well aware. But this is it, Jaro, there will be no more you can extract. It will be finished," said Caption Belecin. Looking one more time to Soliana, Captain Belecin addressed her, "I do not know how or why you came into the company of this man, but I can assure you, no good will come of it. Yes, you will be granted passage, but understand, his price will come due. And I fear you will be ill equipped to pay it."
As the captain motioned the guards to open the gates, several of them hesitated drawing the ire of their captain. As he forcefully barked his orders again, Soliana turned to the man named Jaro and said, "Thank you". He did not speak but nodded his head in acknowledgement and walked back into the crowd, disappearing almost as quickly as he had appeared. She made a note to thank him again later if time and opportunity allowed.
Dregor stepped forward and addressed the captain, "Captain Belecin, thank you for your graciousness. If you or any of your men would like to join us in our search for refuge, you will not be turned away."
"Your offer is noted, but we are quite safe within the walls of the stone keep. They have never failed before and will not fail now," he said with all the graciousness possessed by one who had risen to the position of captain in an empire exploring its eloquence.
"Are you sure, Captain? We would welcome you with open arms," said Dregor, persisting in his offer. Soliana looked to Captain Belecin, but saw his eyes remained focused on his loyalty to Lord Myosk.
"Your companion, Jaro, might protest our inclusion within your ranks. But even if he would not, we must remain loyal to The Stone Keep, Lord Myosk, and The Silver Empire. I am quite sure our forces will stand to defeat this dark army with little effort," he said.
"Perhaps, but perhaps not. You might not want to blindly place your faith in the trappings of men, or their institutions," he said, continuing to challenge the sensibilities of the Captain.
Pausing, the captain decided how to respond, "Are you suggesting that we put our beliefs somewhere else? Where then would you suggest," he asked slightly mocking Dregor's innocence.
Seeing that the Captain was growing tired of their conversation and fearing his decision might be swayed by Dregor’s insistence, Soliana did not wait for him to respond. Instead, she grabbed him by the arm and pulled him slightly as she walked toward the open gate, "Forgive us, Captain Belecin. We appreciate the allowance you have granted us. If there is ever anything we can do for you in return, please just make it known, and it will be done." Under her breath she whispered to Dregor, "We must go."
It took longer for her and her followers to complete their passage through the gate than what she had originally thought. Since leaving the center of the city, she had not had the opportunity to see just how much their numbers had grown. What began as a couple hundred had grown into multiple hundreds, even perhaps a thousand. As she stood, watching until the very last person had exited the gates, she was forced to consider the logistics of providing for a group of unexperienced travelers this large. Not to mention, the final destination of their escape had not been even considered let alone solidified. In all honesty, she had never thought they would be permitted to exit. As such, it was beyond her consideration to decide upon a location, at least, none that would have been given any thought greater than this explicit moment.
"Well now, it appears as though our numbers have grown much larger than they were at the time of your speec
h," said the man she knew as Jaro.
"Indeed, they have," she agreed. Turning to look at him, "I would like to thank you again for interceding on our behalf. I do not know what has transpired between you and Captain Belecin, but for my part, I am thankful that it has. Were it not for you, we would have likely found ourselves trapped inside the city walls.”
“The Captain owed me a favor. I collected upon it. Nothing more,” he said as he surveyed the last of the citizens to cross the threshold from city to countryside.
“I should say that it is hardly the matter of a simple favor to sway a Captain of the Guard to betray a direct order from his Lord,” she said placing a hand on his forearm. "Thank you," she said again.
"M’lady, it is nothing. Please, I can assure you that my act was not based on selflessness. After all, it is never a small thing to come to the aid of a beautiful woman," he said with a small grin. "Now, to the point. Have you decided on a plan to sneak around the gathered army? They will no doubt be preoccupied and should prove easy to bypass."
"We will not need to sneak around the army. We are not heading in their direction. We are going to head north, beyond the mountains," she said beginning to walk to the head of the caravan.
"Beyond the mountains? Are you sure? I do not think that would be a wise decision," he said catching up to her brisk pace.
"Oh? And why is that?" she asked him.
"Do you not know what lies across the mountains?" he asked as he reached out to grip her arm.
She quickly dislodged his grasp with a subtle twist of her elbow, “Do not grab my arm again unless you wish your hand to be removed from its wrist,” she said quietly. “I know full well what lies across the mountains to the north. I also know that to remain within the province that has just been taken by a dark force would not be conducive to our freedom. Our only hope is to cross the mountain pass." She was familiar with the animosity between the Orcs and Man. Long and storied was the history between both races, and none of it peaceful. Sure, there were periods of relatively passive aggression, but for the most part, at least on the border, there were frequent skirmishes. However, those skirmished resulted from mainly a political origin as both man and orc claimed rights into each of the other’s lands. Yet, in her studies of orcish culture, to better understand their battle techniques, she came to understand they were not the brutishly barbaric, blood-crazed monsters of her youth. Indeed, they were hardened by battle as the preferred means to settle any dispute, but rarely were they provoked to violence for violence sake alone.
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