by Kate Sander
Made for the most important people to outlast a slaughter.
“Well,” Jules said to the Queen behind her, “Where do we go now?”
Senka stopped walking and held her hand out, feeling a slight draft pass over her hand. Maybe the Queen wasn’t so crazy.
“I’m not sure,” the Queen said. “I am not a Sol, so I was never supposed to be told about any of this. Only the first born in that bloodline gets that information. I managed to get the King drunk and got this much out of him.”
Vigo laughed scathingly in his high voice.
None of them noticed Senka walking through the bunker slowly, hand held in front of her.
“You mean to tell me,” Vigo said shrilly, on the verge of hysteria, “That you don’t have a plan after this? That they know were in here, that they can break this door down, and you don’t know where this tunnel is?”
“Hey!” Jules yelled, pointing his finger in Vigo’s chest, “You knew the plan. You volunteered. Don’t talk to her majesty like that.”
Vigo grabbed his finger and pushed Jules in the shoulder, “Don’t you dare place your hand on me.”
The Queen wedged her way in between the two men as Jules tried to push Vigo back.
Senka ignored them, following the draft with her outstretched hand. The ground cooled under her feet and she ventured into the back corner of the cave. Smiling, Senka pushed a bed to the side, revealing an out-of-place rug. They almost made this too easy.
She whistled loudly, stopping the scuffle behind her. They ran up, loudly, and the Queen gave her a smile and Jules helped Senka heave the trap door open.
“Well done. We can’t let them see where we’ve gone. I’ll replace everything and go down there last. Get down there.”
Senka nodded and jumped into the black hole without a second thought. Landing lightly, she ventured down the tunnel and waited for the others.
Jules lowered himself into the hole, dangling from his fingertips before her dropped.
Pussy.
He scurried out of the way and Vigo followed in the same matter. A loud scraping from above of the Queen replacing the bed.
Propping the door open a few inches, she handed her bow down to Jules. She carefully lowered herself head first into Jules’ waiting arms, the trap door slamming behind her, plunging them in total darkness.
A loud bang from above. The guards were ramming the door. They were running out of time.
The Queen found her food and, fumbling a little in the dark, finally turned on the Pulse light. Senka didn’t mind the darkness. Two years of spending twelve hours a day in total black really helped her senses.
Vigo was panicking beside her. His breath loud and raspy, so loud they could probably hear him on the surface.
The Pulse light flickered on and Vigo tried to jump up, hit his head on the low tunnel ceiling, and fell in a heap, holding his head.
Amateurs. Where did the Queen find these guys?
Senka tried not to laugh at him, but failed miserably. The Queen held her finger to her lips and passed the Pulse light to her. Clearly, Senka was the best equipped to lead.
Senka turned and ran, holding the pulse light in front of her, hunched over so she didn’t hit her head. The other three followed behind her, struggling to keep up.
She could leave them behind. It would be easy. They were slow, weak. She had the Pulse light. Turn it off and run away.
Something stopped her.
The look the Queen had given her. The trust in her eyes. The hope.
This is no place for hope.
613 was getting farther and farther ahead in the twisting and turning tunnel. The Queen was getting worried. If she left them there without a light, it would take them hours to duck and weave through the roughly cut tunnel. Between the black of the tunnel and the guards behind, the Queen didn’t know what was worse.
The Queen saw 613 take a hard turn to the left and the light was completely extinguished. Panic rose, choking her. She didn’t dare speak. They had no idea where they were in relation to Solias. She could still be under the bunker. The Queen had lost all sense of time and space in the darkness.
She lunged forward to grab Jules but he wasn’t there. Stomach dropping, she fell to her hands in the dirt. The others had disappeared. Crushing darkness stifled her breath. Completely alone with no sense of direction, she crumbled on the ground.
This was no place to die.
Senka turned and saw two others way behind her. Vigo took up most of the tunnel, his vast shoulders from one side to another. Standing tall, his head barely scraped the ceiling. His short fame fit almost perfectly. Jules came up behind him and had to stoop at his waist.
“Wait,” Jules said, puffing, “Wait. You have to slow down a bit.”
Senka nodded and sat in the tunnel on her knees. She breathed deeply and tucked a piece of brown hair behind her ear. Jules turned to see how the Queen was doing and he realized she wasn’t behind him.
“The Queen’s gone!” he whispered. “We have to go back for her.”
Senka hopped to her feet and unsheathed a knife, staring at him, eyes blazing.
“No!” He was struggling to keep his voice low, “She didn’t betray us. She wouldn’t. Her life is depending on this as much as yours.”
Senka stared at him, and nodded slowly. She gave Jules the Pulse light and pointed down the tunnel, towards the exit. She then pointed to herself and back towards the bunker and towards the Queen.
“No, we’ll go together.”
Senka shook her head, pointed to the light, the exit, her and back. She shoved the light into his hand, pushed him forward and turned and ran away stooped, left hand lightly touching the wall.
“Well, not a talker is she,” Jules commented to Vigo. Vigo grunted his agreement and Senka left them both behind to face the darkness alone.
The Queen was on the threshold of a complete meltdown. She didn’t know which way to go. She scrambled on her hands and knees, trying to find the wall so she could go a direction, any direction. Even being caught by the guards seemed better than this. Death for treason was better than dying alone in the black. At least at the gallows there was fresh air and sky overhead. The dank old air was crushing her lungs as she scurried on her hands and knees.
Something grabbed her arm and a hand was placed roughly over her mouth. The Queen tried to scream but she couldn’t make a sound. Panicking and thrashing, she tried to get away from her attacker, but the hands gripped her wrist and held her mouth to keep her silent.
She couldn’t breathe. She was going to suffocate. And yet, the hands held firm.
Trying to relax, she gasped air through her nose. Once she controlled her breathing, the hand let go of her mouth while another guided her hand to a belt. It was 613. The Queen almost yelled with joy. 613 guided her hands to the back of her belt. All the Queen had to do was hang on to her guide.
Senka rolled her eyes when she heard the Queen scrounging on the ground, breath coming in gasps. Surrounded by complete blackness for twelve hours a day for the last two years, she had learned to use her other senses. After she calmed the Queen down, she guided her hands to the back of her belt. Lightly touching the wall with her right hand, she guided the pair towards the direction of the exit.
It took a lot longer than Senka expected and the Queen, though quite strong, had clearly not been running. They had to take multiple breaks. The twisting of the tunnel didn’t let them see very far in front of them, so there was no way to tell how far away they were from Jules, Vigo and the Pulse light. After her solo escapade in the darkness, the Queen wasn’t in a talking mood, which suited Senka just fine. Senka also knew where she was at all times by checking her aura. The Queen had a bright orange aura, much like the sun. Senka liked the color, therefore liked the Queen.
Senka pulled the Queen up from their last break and guided her hands to her belt. She kept her ears peeled for the sound of the others, though the heavy steps and breathing of the Queen drowned most oth
er sound out. Luckily, still no sounds of approaching guards.
Senka took a hard right and was greeted by the site of Jules, Pulse light in hand, waiting in the corridor. Vigo’s head was hanging down from a trap door in the roof. Jules must have boosted him up. Senka pointed at the Queen and then pointed to Vigo. Jules understood and boosted the Queen up to Vigo’s grasp. Senka could hear her gasping the fresh air. Jules then boosted Senka up and, with a leap, jumped up into Vigo’s arms.
Senka breathed in the fresh air. She had been in that prison for two years. Trees surrounded them. Beautiful, green trees. Bombarded with the smells of trees and crops, flowers and moss, she inhaled deeply, taking it all in. Cool, fresh air tickled her skin. She held her arms out and turned around in a circle, feeling the beautiful grass on her feet and the wind in her hair. She turned and faced the three others with a large, toothy grin.
The Queen laughed, “I owe you one. Really I do.” The Queen was sitting on the ground, covered head to toe in dirt. Vigo and Jules hadn’t fared much better, they were dark with grime. Senka looked down and saw her hands and feet were black. Clearly she looked the same. She couldn’t see Solias from the copse of trees. The tunnel must have led them a mile or more out of the city.
“Now,” the Queen said as she pushed herself to her feet. “I fear my husband might sober up soon and wake up. I have a way back into the city, not a worry.” She took her very thick green cloak off and gave it to Senka, pulling a pair of supple leather boots out of the pocket. Senka gave a curt nod. The Queen removed her bow and quiver, holding it out to her. It was beautiful, the wood was elm and deftly made, the arrows superb. Senka examined it in awe and looked up at the Queen. Senka’s eyes welled up and she angrily wiped the tears away.
“Screw it,” the Queen said and gave Senka a hug. Senka didn’t hug back but she allowed the Queen to bury her head in her shoulder. Jules coughed and the Queen let go, blushing.
“Sorry,” the Queen said, and her face was all business. “I need you to go to the Melanthios and negotiate a treaty. We want peace, it’s the council who doesn’t. The King and I are under severe pressure, I honestly don’t know if I’ll survive to see you again. Go to the main Melanthios village and tell them I will personally meet with their leader to negotiate peace, a treaty so iron clad even the council won’t be able to break it.”
Senka nodded. Swinging the cloak on over her daggers, she sat to tie her boots.
“You can reach me by raven. Don’t trust anyone. We live in a dark time. I’m leaving Vigo and Jules with you to help. Don’t fail. If the two of us fail, we’ll all die. All I have is you.”
They stared for a while, neither wanting to break eye contact. Senka owed this woman everything. So, revenge would have to wait. With a final nod, the Queen turned away and ran towards the city.
Senka slung the bow and quiver over her shoulder and ran northeast, leaving the boys to follow at their own pace. Leaving the trees, she looked up and saw a clear night sky with the beautiful Aurora burning overhead.
Beauty. How could she forget to look up? Never again.
She loved the stars and the bold green of the Aurora cutting through the sky filled her with hope. Hope was dangerous, but it weaseled its way inside.
She had failed her master, she would not fail the Queen.
10
Senka
Senka set a hard pace through the open field, her eyes set on a small copse of trees in the distance. After being cooped up for so long, she relished every sight, sound and smell. She breathed deeply and loved the burning sensation of exercise in her lungs. The bright green Aurora overhead lit the path, a rare sight in Langundo.
This was the closest to happiness she’d felt in a long time.
Senka knew that she had left Jules and Vigo far behind her, but she wasn’t worried. This flat landscape meant they could see her for miles. They needed to get to the trees before daybreak when her escape would surely be discovered. She basically sprinted the last quarter mile, letting her legs run loose and breathing deeply. Slowing down, she jogged into the copse of trees, lungs burning but feeling exhilarated . Time to figure out a shelter for the day.
She found a couple of fallen trees over a rock and thought that, with a bit of work, it would suffice. A few feet away was a small creek that the farmers must use for irrigation. They wouldn’t find food but after her time in prison, she didn’t need a lot of food to keep going. The guys would just have to suffer through.
She was well into setting up camp and hiding their shelter with more leaves and fallen trees when Jules and Vigo crashed into the trees, breathing heavily.
“Water,” Jules managed to pant.
Senka pointed to the small creek and they went and had their fill. She watched Vigo carefully, that maroon aura set her on edge. She paid no attention to Jules, his green aura was one she had seen often. He was average.
Jules returned and she showed him the shelter.
“Well done,” Jules said, still recovering from his run, “I figured we would rest during the day and travel at night. Especially over the plains. We should hit the forest in a week’s time, then we can switch it up.”
Senka nodded and pointed at herself, showing that she agreed.
“Look, you don’t have to be quiet anymore,” Jules said, “We’re way out of ear shot, and have a good eight hours head start on anyone finding out you’re gone. They usually don’t change guards until well after sunrise and they will have a hard time figuring out which prisoner is missing. When they do figure it out, it will be a while until they even have an idea about which direction we’ve gone.”
Senka looked at him, brows furrowed. Jules thought she looked sad. When you got passed the scar and stared into those eyes, she was really quite pretty.
“Look you don’t have to talk if you don’t want to, I’m just saying you don’t have to be quiet anymore.”
Senka sighed and opened her mouth.
Stunned, Jules couldn’t look away. Her tongue had been cut out. He stood up and paced angrily. How could the Melanthios do that to someone?
“Who the hell did that to you?” he exclaimed.
Senka held up one finger, made a swirling motion with her index finger, then pointed behind her.
“One year ago,” he offered.
She smiled and nodded. She then pointed at the scar on her face.
“During torture?” he asked.
She nodded again.
Jules could barely speak, “You mean… You mean to tell me we did this?”
She looked at him confused and gave a quick nod, clearly meaning “Well of course you did this.”
Jules stopped pacing, “The Sun Gods don’t do stuff like this, I can’t believe we would do anything like this to anyone. It’s the Melanthios who torture and do stuff, the Sun Gods protect.”
It was Senka’s turn to stand up angrily. Glaring at the insult, she balled her fists at her sides. She wanted to hit him, but she held herself back. The leaders were lying to their people. But how dumb can you be?
She pointed to her face again.
“Well, that’s obviously new.” He stopped pacing. “I’m sorry. The Queen had said we were being lied to, I just didn’t know it was this bad. So Intelligence did that to you? The scar and cut out your tongue?”
Senka sat and nodded again. Jules smiled, “Kind of funny. She wanted information and she cut out your tongue. I don’t mean to be laughing at you, but seems kind of stupid.”
Senka pointed to herself and nodded and started to giggle. The stress of two years imprisonment started to melt away.
“Listen, I really want you to be able to talk to me, okay?”
She looked at him quizzically.
“Well we can start with hand signs, and I’ll speak out loud. When I guess, you nod. We can make a language with our hands. I’ve heard of people doing it in Carabesh. Eventually me and you will be able to talk without using our voices. Then I can start teaching others. Deal?” Jules held out his hand
for a shake.
Senka hesitated. She couldn’t understand why this tall man was being nice to her. Vigo returned, crashing through the trees. Senka stared at Jules, eyes boring into his. Finally, with a nod, she shook.
Jules smiled toothily. “Great,” he said. Vigo turned and went into the shelter, clearly not in a talking mood.
“So what do I call you?”
It took a lot of attempts, but they eventually got it.
“Senka?” He said finally, and she nodded happily.
“Okay Senka, nice to meet you. I’m Jules.”
She pointed at him and had a questioning look on her face.
“You want to know about me?”
A quick nod.
“Well, I’m afraid you probably won’t like me when I tell you my story.”
She looked at him, expectantly.
“But I suppose we need to trust each other. I am a member of the Sun Gods.”
He waited nervously for her reaction, but she continued to stare at him with steady eyes.
Taking it as a signal to continue, he said, “I didn’t do exceptionally well in my trials. I didn’t make the Exalted or anything, but I survived. I was assigned to the Second Infantry. We just pretty much policed Solias, sending the vagrants to the dungeons for a few months at a time. Nothing ever happened to anyone from Solias that happened to you,” he added, hoping she realized he didn’t know what was going on down there.
“Anyways, one day a lady ran up to us when we were on patrol. Apparently someone was threatening to kill themselves in the market. Me and my partner got there and talked the man down. He was some trader, I’m not really sure what he did. I haven’t seen him since. The lady happened to be the Queen. She would often wear civilian clothes and go to market herself. She thought I would be a good fit for her personal guard. This was a few years back. I joined and have been devoted to the Queen ever since.”
He finished his story and looked at her. She didn’t seem to judge, and occupied herself by fiddling with her fingernails. Nodding, she pointed into the shelter where Vigo had gone.