by Davis Ashura
*Rukh and Jessira told us,* Aia said. *They called us and told us. They also asked to find and warn you if at all possible.*
Travail’s mouth curled, and he growled. In the ancient world, trolls had been Justices, givers of judgment. They still were, and sometimes justice required the harshest of verdicts. Mahavans and unformed had arrived on Arylyn. Travail readied himself for travel. *Let’s find Rukh and Jessira.*
FINAL PREPARATIONS
October 1990
* * *
William started in confusion when Jason nudged him.
“Pay attention,” Jason hissed.
William glanced around the command tent, hoping no one else had noticed his momentary lack of awareness. He’d grown lost in his thoughts, rubbing the locket holding the picture of his family. It dangled from a silver chain around his neck. He’d been wondering how Landon was doing.
Thankfully, the others in the tent—Rukh and Daniel—had their heads bent over a map and hadn’t noticed his inattentiveness. William gave Jason a brief nod of ‘thanks’. Rukh had chosen the three of them to be his lieutenants, and William would have been humiliated if he’d been found staring off in the distance and not paying attention to the briefing. He returned his focus to Rukh’s explanation.
Earlier in the day, the forces under Rukh’s command had pushed hard, making a beeline through Jaipurana Pass. However, shortly after nightfall, with the unformed hopefully unable to see them, they’d turned around and edged back some distance the way they’d come. They’d made camp a few miles south of Jaipurana Pass and five miles north of the mahavans’ last known location, which was near the entrance to Charybdis Way.
Outside the tent, a steep drop-off plunged on either side and ended in jagged scree. An intermittent wind moaned like an old man in pain. At these heights, the blustery breeze gusted cold, and William suppressed a shiver at the eerie sound and the icy chill. He’d grown too used to the rest of the island’s warmth. Thankfully, Rukh had insisted they carry thick coats and warm boots and gloves. The heavy clothing was especially needed because they couldn’t afford any fires. The flames would give them away.
Jason cleared his throat. “Will we send scouts to confirm the mahavans’ location?”
Rukh answered. “No. The unformed might see them and give the mahavan commander knowledge of what we intend.”
Jason frowned. “Assuming the trip-lines we left along the Riven Road are telling us the truth.” He referred to the weaves they’d set along the road, which only went off during the passage of large groups of individuals.
Daniel shrugged. “I don’t see what else the trip-lines could be picking up. It has to be the mahavans.”
William tapped the map, at a point north of the Elven Tor and several miles from where the Riven Road originated off Sita’s Song. “Are the rest of our forces in position, the group south of the mahavans?”
Rukh nodded. “I heard from Ward earlier in the evening. His group is in place. They’ve blockaded the entrance to Janaki Valley. They’ll push north in the morning. We’ll squeeze the mahavans in the Charybdis.”
Jason was still frowning.
Rukh noticed. “What is it?”
Jason pointed at the same place William had. “Ward’s group only has one hundred warriors. Are you sure it’s enough to hold the line? From the last report, the mahavans number two hundred warriors and more than fifty unformed.”
“Ward’s also got cannons,” Rukh reminded him, “and they’re building fortifications and limiting the routes through which the mahavans can reach them.”
Jason persisted. “What if we’re late?”
Rukh offered no easy answer. “Ward’s unit will have to hold.”
William shifted, made uncomfortable at the reply.
“We better not be late,” Jason muttered.
“We won’t be,” Rukh said.
“Any word from Lilith?” William asked. Since the mahavans had landed, he’d hardly spoken more than ten words to Serena, and he worried about her and everyone else. Selene, Mr. Zeus, Fiona . . . All those they’d left behind at the village. Even Jake, who was with Ward’s group.
Rukh’s jaw tensed. William guessed he was thinking about Jessira. “There hasn’t been any sighting of the enemy,” he replied, his voice flat as a drone’s, “but they’ll show. I’m sure of it.”
He was worried about Jessira, and for some reason, William felt himself lifted by the thought. It was good to know their deadly, often grim and terrifying commander could still feel fear because it meant he was also human.
Jason grimaced. “Damn mahavans. Their ships are probably hanging over the horizon where we can’t see them.”
“That would be my guess as well,” Rukh said. “Any other questions?”
Daniel spoke up. “Can the warriors talk softly amongst themselves? This is our first battle, and they’ll want to discuss things.”
“They can talk,” Rukh said, “but only if an Air adept is available to form a block around them.”
Daniel started in surprise. “You’re still worried about Walkers listening in?”
William quirked a surprised eyebrow. “You’re not? On Sinskrill, Walkers listened to everyone. I can’t imagine them not doing the same thing here.”
“I agree with William,” Rukh said. “We don’t know much about how the mahavans wage war, but what we know of their culture tells me that they are a deeply suspicious lot and prone to paranoia. I don’t want to give our plans away when we can easily keep them secret.”
Daniel nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“Any other questions?” Rukh repeated. His gaze flicked expectantly from one of them to another.
A trio of “No, sirs” met his question.
Rukh clapped his hands. “Then get some rest. Be with your men. Tomorrow will be a tough day. The mahavans are on foot. We’re on bicycles. Speed will be on our side. Even with a five-mile head start we should be on them within several hours.” His face went hard. “After that the hard, bloody work starts. We’ll drive them forward and break them against Ward.”
“Yes, sir,” William and the others replied.
“On final thing,” Rukh said, reclaiming their attention. “Make sure everyone knows the night guard rotation. I don’t want anyone taking it for any longer than two hours. That goes for the three of you, as well.”
“Yes, sir,” they replied again.
William quirked a grin as he thought of something. “You know, after all this is over we’re going to have to come up with specific names for the small units making up the Irregulars.”
Rukh smiled back. “Yes, but it’s a task for another time. For now, get some rest.”
Adam frowned as he considered what to do next.
Darkness had fallen, and his warriors had settled in for the evening, camping where the Riven Road broadened onto a wide shelf of stone before narrowing again as it entered the Charybdis. The spine of a mountain rose on one side of their position while on the side opposite, a scree slope plunged about fifty feet. Guards patrolled the camp’s perimeter, a mix of mahavans and unformed. The latter paced about in the form of tigers, choosing an animal form that was both ferocious and had excellent night vision.
The only sounds to be heard were those of the surrounding jungle and the moaning wind. Adam had insisted on utter quiet, no conversations unless they were blocked. No fires, either. He didn’t want anything to give them away.
While he stared about the camp, Adam considered how far his warriors had come. They’d penetrated deep into Arylyn, encountering little opposition on the way south. Only a few scouts here and there. Nothing more. Everything was going according to plan, which was what bothered Adam.
Things had gone too smoothly, and he should have realized it sooner. As Far Beyonders reckoned matters, Adam should have been keeping vigil for some demon named Murphy and his unalterable Law. The monster would always rear his ugly, horned head at the worst possible moment, and he had.
Earlier in the eveni
ng, Adam learned that the magi scouts they’d come across had possessed satellite phones. It meant the scouts had likely transmitted the mahavans’ exact position. In fact, the magi might have known all along of Sinskrill’s presence on their island. There might already be an ambush waiting for them up the road.
Adam cursed silently. How do I plan when so much remains unknowable?
Early in the march he’d used the Walkers’ abilities to listen at a distance and eavesdrop as the magus commander, the supposed World Killer, Rukh Shektan, detailed a plan to meet the mahavans at the Jaipurana Pass. It was why Adam had forced his forces off the Riven Road and pushed them through the Scylla. It had been a hard march, longer. South of Mount Madhava he’d regained the Riven Road. They now had a clear shot to Sita’s Song and Lilith with only the Charybdis to traverse.
Until tonight, Adam had thought his forces well-positioned, but thinking about it he realized the terrain ahead wasn’t favorable. There were too many places to blockade the road, and Adam worried that a blockade was exactly what his forces would face.
Samuel Ingot, his second-in-command, approached. He wore his armor and arms, and Adam silently applauded his carefulness. The man stopped, his brows lifted in silent expectation.
Adam gestured and formed a block.
“You seem troubled, sir,” Samuel said.
“I am troubled,” Adam admitted. He reviewed his concerns with the other man.
Samuel grunted. “The unformed should have told us about the satellite phones days ago, the first time they encountered a scout.”
Adam nodded agreement and glared at a passing unformed in fresh annoyance. “The magus commander, Rukh Shektan, doesn’t strike me as a fool who’ll run straight for where he thinks the enemy might be.” He snorted in disgust. “In his shoes, I would have allowed us to reach this exact location, harry us through the Charybdis, and crush us between his forces.”
Samuel stared south, as if he could see the potential ambush despite the darkness. “Have the unformed seen anything untoward up ahead?”
Adam shook his head. “Nothing but a rockslide. They can’t make out much else given the fog and mist shrouding the area.”
Samuel frowned, although the expression was difficult to make out in the dark. “I don’t recall a rockslide on Riven Road within the Charybdis when I was here in the spring.”
The young mahavan’s words spurred a warning bell that jangled in the back of Adam’s mind. His brows furrowed as he pondered what the rockslide might entail. “It wasn’t in Brandon’s report, either.” He hesitated. “It could be a natural occurrence, but . . .”
“You don’t believe it?”
Adam nodded as his misgivings crystallized. “It’s more likely an ambush, a blockade, and Shektan’s force of three hundred that we thought were rolling through the Jaipurana this afternoon might have circled back. They might be no more than a few miles north of our position.”
Samuel swore. “What do we do, sir?”
Adam took a moment to think. “With first light we’ll cut cross-country.”
“It’ll add days to our travel,” Samuel said. “It’ll also give the magi that much more time to prepare for us.”
Adam had already realized that. “I’m open to suggestions.”
As expected, Samuel had none to offer.
Adam sighed. “If I’m right about the rockslide and the location of Shektan’s forces, we’re liable to be ambushed if we march forward. It could be a disaster.”
“Can the unformed act as a distraction?”
“They can, but despite their overall stupidity, I doubt they’ll agree to suicide. Not even the Servitor could command them so.”
Samuel straightened. “Our mission was to inflict death upon the enemy,” he said, his tone righteous. “If you give me command of our mahavans, you and the unformed can sneak away. You can bypass the blocking forces and attack Lilith. Between you and the Servitor’s ships, you can bring it to ruin.”
Samuel’s suggestion sounded noble, except for one fact. “How do you think I can keep up with the unformed?” Adam asked. “They can transform into birds or animals that are fleet of foot.”
Nervousness etched Samuel’s features, and he cautiously glanced about. Though there was no one near and a block disguised their conversation, he leaned in close. “I know about you and the Servitor. Your unformed powers.”
Adam’s face went flat and inscrutable. He didn’t want to kill Samuel but he would if he had to. No one else could learn what Samuel had apparently discovered. Adam gazed at Samuel through narrowed eyes as he considered what to do.
Samuel swallowed heavily, but he never dropped his gaze.
“How did you learn?” Adam asked after a moment of silence.
“When we first landed, you disciplined a young unformed,” Samuel said. “I saw your teeth. They weren’t your own.”
“You were mistaken.”
“I am certain I was not.”
Adam fell silent again, grimacing sourly as he cursed Samuel’s clever eyes. “What do you want in return for your silence?”
Samuel straightened to a military posture, his face full of purpose. “Nothing. I only wish to serve.”
Adam gazed at Samuel skeptically. “How?”
“Split the forces as I said. Take the unformed, wreck Lilith, and escape aboard the fleet waiting at Lilith Harbor. I’ll . . .” Samuel’s mouth tightened. “I’ll ensure you have time to complete the pilgrimage.”
Adam wasn’t sure whether to trust the man, but he saw no other options. If he could trust Samuel, different opportunities might also be available. His mind flitted to other means of accomplishing what the Servitor had ordered. His mouth pursed as an idea came to him. He focused on Samuel, who still waited expectantly. “You understand what you’re offering?”
“I do.”
Samuel sounded earnest, and Adam trusted it. Samuel had never been able to fully control his emotions, not like Serena, who could lie to the most cynical sinner and have them proclaim her an angel. “Good,” Adam said, “then this is what we’ll do.” He explained what he had in mind. “Do you have any final requests?”
Samuel managed a weak grin. “Can you take Evelyn with you?”
Adam barked laughter.
Serena stood atop Clifftop, at the place where the Village Green jutted forward like a ship’s prow. Night had fallen, and she gazed at the ocean, still visible beneath the cold light of a half-moon. Waves washed against Lilith Bay’s golden shore, and trees all along the village’s escarpment swayed beneath a constant breeze. That same wind whipped Serena’s hair, making her wished she’d braided it. The smell of roasting meat and spices wafted from Jimmy Webster’s restaurant as a band set up their instruments on the rebuilt gazebo. Nearby conversations drifted to Serena. So did bright laughter. It seemed like most people were determined to treat tonight like any other.
But tonight was different, not simply because none of the lamp-posts had been lit—Jessira wouldn’t allow it—but because tonight might be the last evening of what Lilith had always been. The peace and beauty here might be—likely would be—shattered.
Others must have realized it as well because Serena sensed a tension in the air, an underlying fear in the words and laughter she heard from those still out and about.
Serena glanced at Jessira, who stood beside her. Of course she had been wise enough braid her hair. It hung down her back, and her green eyes seemed strangely alight as she searched the water. Serenity, however, prevailed on her face and posture, and Serena took heart. If Jessira wasn’t afraid then she shouldn’t be either.
Fiona paced up alongside them. “Selene is with Emma and her family.”
“How is she doing?” Serena asked.
“Her friends are treating tonight like it’s some kind of wonderful adventure,” Fiona replied, “but Selene knows better. She’s of Sinskrill. She remembers how deadly life can be. She doesn’t laugh like her friends.”
Serena wished her sist
er didn’t have those grim, childhood memories, but if nothing else, Sinskrill had made Selene wise to the world’s dangers as well as strong enough to face them. Serena only hoped that strength wouldn’t be needed tomorrow. She prayed that no violence would touch her little sister.
“I hope she stays safe,” Serena said.
“I hope everyone stays safe,” Fiona said.
Mr. Zeus popped his head over the top of Cliff Spirit’s Main Stairs. Since the mahavans’ landing on Arylyn, deeper wrinkles now etched the old man’s craggy face, and he looked to have aged ten years in the past few days. “The terraces are empty,” he told Jessira. “I’ve spoken to some of the older citizens, the ones who didn’t want to leave their homes, and talked sense into them. The Irregulars are helping gather them up.”
Jessira nodded. “Good. Get some rest. You’re worn out.”
Fiona stepped forward. “I’ve found a place for us,” she said to Mr. Zeus. “Come.” She held out a hand, and Mr. Zeus took it.
Serena smiled fondly as she watched the old couple drift hand-in-hand deeper into the heart of Clifftop.
Jessira smiled as well. “I’m glad for them. They deserve happiness, no matter how late in life they found it.”
“We all do,” Serena said. “This is a beautiful place full of good people.”
Jessira’s smile became distant and wistful. “It would be a tragedy to see Lilith die.”
Serena had heard Jessira and Rukh’s story about their homes, Ashoka and Stronghold, and she prayed Lilith didn’t meet the same fate as those two fabled cities. She flicked her gaze at Jessira. “Do you really think the mahavans will come by ship?”
Jessira nodded. “Of course. You do, too.”
“Where are they, then?”
Jessira pointed to the ocean. “Beyond the horizon. They’re waiting there, but sometime tomorrow, they’ll sail to the bay.” Her face hardened. “Then it starts.”
Serena, not usually one to offer hope, found herself in a strange position. “I’m sure our cannons will drive them off “