Battle Cry

by Lara Lee Hunter

  “What is seasick?” Deal asked the question that everybody was wondering.

  Myra had not seen Deal before, but when he stepped out from behind his father; she looked over at him and her face paled underneath her tan. Her mouth sagged open and she choked out, “Blake? Blake, is that you or am I befuddled by a ghost?”

  Deal said, “I’m sorry, you must be befuddled by a ghost. My name is Deal. I come from the same woods that the rest of us do; I am an Outlaw just like the rest of us are. I don’t know Blake.”

  Myra regained her composure so quickly that it was almost as if she had never lost it. She waved an imperious hand at the young boy and said, “Of course you don’t. How could you? Blake was born in Olympus, and stolen away many years ago. It’s a story not worth telling — at least not anymore.”

  Reena had a feeling that she was lying. That she had a story that was way beyond worth telling. She was not about to talk about it though and that was easy to see. Reena was not going to press her either; she was offering them passage to Olympus and she was just grateful to be going.

  **

  The next day she was doubting that gratitude. Most of the tribe was seasick. With the notable exception of Deal who took to life on the boat as if he’d been born to it, most of them were dealing with upset stomachs and nausea that would not end.

  At one point Lucas even exhorted her to go ahead and kill him now. His exact words were, “I don’t care if I ever see Olympus, I just want off this damn boat.”

  Those who were not seasick were up on the top decks, hanging off the railings and staring down, hoping for a glimpse of the fabulous key creatures that Myra and her crew swore were down there. She had them all convinced that giant striped white and black leviathans were all around the waters.

  Reena was fairly certain that she was lying; she also said there were creatures there that had something called tentacles. She said they could suck a man off of a boat and take him down before he could even so much as scream. She said these were all old creatures — creatures from before the Great War who had somehow managed to survive in the deepest depths of the ocean, sustaining themselves and sustaining their offspring.

  As they stood on the rail now, Myra said, “If you look hard enough you can tell which way the wind is blowing from the way the waves rise. It is hard to believe that once upon a time there was nothing left in these oceans, but the creatures that were far far below the depths.

  “It wasn’t so long ago either. Once upon a time and not so long ago, almost all the life was dead. She had green stuff floating below. That was seaweed. It’s what a lot of the animals eat, and at one point it was poisonous so the fish within died. They had no choice, but to die.”

  Reena said, “Nobody ever said that the people who used to inhabit the earth were smart, or compassionate.”

  Myra slanted her a look, “Do you not think that they were?”

  “How could they have been? They allowed a war that killed everything in its path.”

  “Yes, but how many did that? How many were just victims who got caught up in the blasts? Haven’t you ever thought of it that way?”

  No, actually she had not. “My father says that it was all governments. That’s why it’s important for people to maintain their freedom. That’s why we live in the woods, because if we lived in the city we would have to do as the Governor ordered and the Governor is a madman.”

  “Most men in power are.”

  “Is the man who rules Olympus a madman as well?”

  “No… Then again the person who rules Olympus is a woman.”

  Reena’s mouth fell open. “Are you serious? But women have no value, women are…”

  Myra asked, “Were you not a gladiator? Do you feel that you have no value?”

  Reena stuttered out, “Of course I have value. Yes I was a gladiator but even gladiators don’t have any worth, not really. What I mean is that where I come from women have to listen to the men unless of course they get very very rich and have their own money and that doesn’t happen too often.”

  Myra said, “Fortunately things in Olympus are very different. Then again Olympus has stood for many many years. It has always been the city in which people strive to be enlightened. Don’t get me wrong; there are some who are not. There are criminals in Olympus and there are those who do things that go against all the laws. I don’t want you to think that there aren’t. Don’t take yourself a pretty picture and expect to go over there and have it met.”

  Reena asked, “What happens to criminals in Olympus?”

  “They are either jailed or executed.”

  “So they execute people in Olympus as well?” Reena could not keep the disappointment out of her tone.

  “Of course they do, sometimes there is no choice. Sometimes even here on the ships people are executed.”

  Reena looked at her, “On the ships? Is there more than one?”

  “Of course. Why do you ask?”

  “If there are ships, then why doesn’t anyone come to our side of the world?”

  “Because nobody thinks that anything exists on the other side of the desert. Besides, everybody knows that to go through the desert one will be stricken with the sickness. A long time ago, many years ago people used to try to get through, but they always died; they never came back anyway.”

  “They went to where we live.”

  “Perhaps so. But after Barkley was sent West, nobody else was ever sent.”

  “Nobody else was ever sent? What does that mean?”

  “It used to be that rather than execute people who were criminals they were sent West. The ships would take them across the water and drop them at the edge of the desert. It was better than death, or at least it was a choice. Like I said the ones who went never came back. But after Barkley was sent West, it was decided that the way should be closed and that is when the great land bridge was removed.”

  Reena was confused; it made no sense at all. She had never heard of the land bridge and she said so. Myra replied, “At one time. You could walk across, or so they say. I don’t believe it but you hear the stories and upon occasion, when the tides are right you can see these… Well, they call them the spine of the old ancestors. It looks like a spine really, it’s a bunch of tiny islands, some of them no more than a foot or so across. Supposedly it’s what’s left of the land bridge.”

  Reena said, “Will you tell me about the ruler of Olympus?”

  Myra said, “I can’t. I’ve never met her. I only know of her from stories. It seems that she runs the city well. There is some hunger of course; there are always people who are unhappy, but she does the best she can. She is not a dictator but rather a leader. Other than that I don’t know what to tell you. I have to go anyway, they need me to help steer the ship.”

  Reena watched the tall woman who called herself a pirate walk along the deck of her ship. The things she had just told her were even more fantastical than the stories of giant creatures swimming below the waters. How could a woman rule an entire city? How could a bridge have existed? One that would span across an entire sea?

  **

  It was a four-day trip across the waters and Reena was up top when she finally saw land in the distance. She stared at it, slightly overwhelmed by it all. It was green — greener than any land she had ever seen. The trees were tall and full, and the birds circled the sandy beach. The grass grew high and lush and there was fine mist of fog rolling in off the ocean.

  She strained toward the land, eager to be off the boat and onto land again even though Myra swore up and down that anyone who ever loved the land again after being aboard a ship was either a fool or mad.

  She did not care if she was mad; she wanted to put her feet on something that did not pitch and roll beneath her every time she turned around. Her whole body longed for the ground below her feet.

  They were here, finally! Half a day’s walk from this shore lay Olympus! Her heart clenched like a closing fist, what if all of this was for nothing? Then what? />
  It would not be for nothing…

  **

  Leaving the sandy beaches behind, they struck out through the well maintained and traveled road that led through the surrounding landscapes and toward the city itself. As soon as they broke free from the beach and the outer ring of trees they could see it: standing tall and beautiful against the blue sky.

  The tall spires of the buildings were decorated with pennants that flapped and waved in the breeze. There was not the smell of incidents that they had begun to associate with cities, and while they could smell the fecund soil below them they could not smell the overflowing gutter system as they drew closer.

  There were walls around the city, and as they drew nearer to them they all began to worry. Myra had said that Olympus welcomed all travelers as long as they had reason to be there. But what reason would they use? Would they say that they were demanding an audience with the ruler?

  They drew abreast of the gates, falling into line behind other travelers. Most the people ahead of them in line were farmers. None of them looked threadbare or starved like the ones in their own city. There was an atmosphere of gaiety hanging over everything. Reena saw Lauren and several of the other women looking at the children who were laughing and playing with almost envious eyes.

  The sight of those children made Reena think. As an outlaw child there was little room for games and, indeed, the games that they did play were games that were designed to teach them how to react as they grew older. How to survive in the woods, and how to hide from the soldiers. These children were playing nonsensical games, clapping their hands and singing little songs. None of them seemed to be very wealthy, but they all seemed to be happy.

  Reena had never considered what might happen if she had a child of her own one day, or if she wanted to do that, but now looking at these children she knew that she did. Or at least, she did as long as she could guarantee them a happier life than what she had had.

  Guilt struck her almost immediately. Was she truly unhappy with the way her father had raised her? How could she be so disloyal to him? He was her father and he had done the best he could!

  Still, there was a nagging little doubt that remained behind. Children should be happy; they should not be forced to live in a city where death was a casual form of entertainment, and neither should they be forced to hide in the woods and live their entire lives in fear because they were outlaws simply by birth.

  It was then that she began to understand that it was the entire system that was corrupt; this was further reaching than just the insane power. It wasn’t the Governor who ruled Aretula at present. This was about a system that had been set in place and left in place despite its unfairness to everybody except those who benefited from being born either wealthy or in a position of power.

  It was obvious that things were not completely perfect here. Once inside the walls they began to see people who were obviously poverty-stricken. Small children danced in the street holding out bowls, begging for money from passersby. Some of them were very dirty and others had obvious signs of neglect and hunger on them. The gutters here were not above ground and they didn’t slow down the streets, which would explain the absence of that smell that she had noticed.

  The markets were cleaner, more contained. They seemed to have an order to them with all of the livestock and freshly killed meat to one side while those who were selling fresh breads, cheeses, and vegetables were on another side. There were jugglers in the street and dancers as well.

  People laughed and talked, and if there were temples she still had not seen one. That absence somehow bothered her; she kept looking around expecting to see statues of the gods and goddesses in place but there were none. There was also no arena, but there were buildings with names that she had never heard before: University, Center for light and so on and so forth.

  . At the beginning of the quest this had seemed like a good idea, the only idea but now that they were here, in Olympus, Reena was at a total loss. She had no idea of where to go and neither did any of her tribe. They were all huddled together like a mini-living organism, afraid to move away from the nucleus.

  Reena spotted a tall building whose upper roof was engraved with the words “justice for all”. She stopped in her tracks, and Deal almost ran right into her back.

  “Maybe that’s where we need to go,” Reena pointed to the building with one finger. “We are here for justice after all.”

  Lucas said, “I’m not sure how the system works here, I don’t think any of us are. Maybe we should ask somebody.”

  Dax said, “That will point this out as outsiders. Do we want that?”

  Reena replied, “We are outsiders. That is why we are here, we need them to help us in our own lands. I don’t think there’s much sense in trying to hide that.”

  There really wasn’t much else they could do. There had been no way to make a plan once in Olympus because they had no knowledge of Olympus and what they had heard of it had seemed so bizarre and ludicrous, so absolutely surreal that they had not really believed it until they had arrived.

  Gathering up her courage Reena began to head towards the Justice Hall. The tribe followed her. All of them were aware of the looks they were getting. Their clothing marked them as foreigners. Not only that, Reena was carrying that sword on her back and while there were other people who bore arms, it seemed she was the only one who did so openly. Not that it mattered, she had nowhere to hide the thing. She was grateful however that the scabbard hid the sword itself, except for the smallest top piece of the till, the last thing on earth she needed was the enraged citizens of Olympus demanding to know where she had gotten the fabled sword.

  The Justice Hall had stairs, long white and sweeping that rose toward the grand marble columns that fronted the doors. They all stood at the base of the stairs looking at each other and taking deep breaths. Lucas said, “Well, I didn’t come all this way to lose my guts now folks.”

  He started up the stairs and they all followed him. Reena was content to walk behind Lucas; she would follow him anywhere and she wondered why it was that he was so willing to hand over leadership to her when it was so obvious that he was the one who was smartest, more capable in battle and more seasoned as well.

  Past the columns were giant carved marble doors. Large statues, also marble, stood about. Reena stared at one of them trying to remember where she had seen that particular statue before. She did not remember it being anywhere in Aretula but yet it seemed incredibly familiar.

  The statue was of a woman, her eyes hidden by a carved blindfold. Her robes revealed nothing of her big year. Her upraised hand held a pair of scales and in the other hand, held out toward the Observer, was the book.

  The others were looking at other statues, but this one fascinated Reena for some reason. She simply could not tear her eyes away from it.

  “She is justice.”

  Reena turned to face the young woman who had spoken to her. “I’m sorry?”

  The other woman smiled, “No need to be sorry. I used to spend hours staring at that statue just like you are right now. I spent most of my childhood playing on the stairs since my father is one of the judges. I was always fascinated by the statue justice because she’s the only one here who is a woman. All of the rest the statues are of men, but justice… she’s a woman. Isn’t that bizarre?”

  Reena didn’t know exactly what bizarre met, but she nodded her head anyway. Hoping this woman was as kind as she appeared, she blurted out, “I need to find the ruler of Olympus. I need to speak with her. How do I find her?”

  The woman who is talking to her had reddish–blonde hair and eyebrows that matched. She pushed her long hair away from her face with an impatient gesture and tilted her head to one side as she scrutinized Reena carefully. “Where are you from?”

  “Does that matter?”

  “I think it does.” A deep frown marred her smooth forehead. “Your speech is different, as are your clothes. Are you alone here?”

  Reena bega
n to back away, panic starting to rise up. If this one was an enemy, she was already in a lot of trouble. Before she could move, the woman’s hand shot out and rested lightly on her arm. “No, please do not fear me. I think you are somebody that I have been waiting for.”

  “Why would you be waiting for me?”

  “Come with me, bring your friends. Don’t bother trying to tell me that you don’t know them; they are all dressed the same way you are and they are all staring about exactly the same way you are. You need me to take you to one of the judges; they are the only people who can get you in to see Calliope.”

  Calliope? Who is that? Reena asked that very question and the answer was that Calliope was the ruler of Olympus. Well, she thought, she had come this far, so there was no sense in not going any further. If seeing a judge was the only way to see Calliope then so be it. If they attempted to imprison her or order her execution, they would find out what a young girl who had already faced down the worst enemies in an arena could do.

  The young woman introduced herself as Helena. She said she was a judge-in-training. Reena and the others had no idea what that meant, but they had an inkling. As they walked along through the Justice Hall, Helena explained to them how the process worked. In order to get anything done and done fairly, every citizen — every person — was granted the right to be heard. If somebody felt that they were being done an injustice, they could bring their plea there to the Hall and ask to speak to one of the judges. The judges would hear their case and if they thought that they had merit, they would declare that. If they thought it had no merit they would declare that.

  Helena told them that a lot of time this is where arguments between people were settled. But come here and speak to the judges and the person who was in the wrong would have to make restitution to the person who was in the right. To Reena and the others it all sounded sort of odd. They were used to the swifter types of justice. In the woods they had their own system and it in the city the system was basically do as the Governor says, which was based on the arena. There was not much room in between those two options.