FARHAYVEN: VENGEANCE

by S. K. Ng

  “I propose an impeachment! A vote of no confidence of his leadership. Have him removed and exiled from the clan!” explained Rake.

  “That wouldn’t work. The other Founders support him!” rejected Eclipse.

  Rake stood silent. He was lost in thought. But he soon realised that Eclipse was not. She had a plan of her own.

  “Then what do you propose? Assassinate him, like how he did the others?” asked Rake.

  “No, I propose a schism! And a sudden exodus! Collect all the followers who are still loyal to the original cause and leave this place and leave him! We can start the clan anew and put in safeguards to ensure that it doesn’t get corrupted like this!” answered Eclipse.

  “You mean cut and run? That may work. But he’ll come after us, that’s for sure,” agreed Rake.

  “We’ll deal with his assassins as they come. They’ll be young and inexperienced, therefore won’t pose much of a threat to us veterans. And after a while, he’ll forget about us; because even if he did manage to kill us, there’ll be no profit in it for him. No one’s paying any gold coins for our deaths. We’ll have the chance to start anew. We’ll have a chance to get things done the right way. We’ll have the chance to regain our honour!” explained Eclipse.

  Rake held out his hand and smiled ear to ear.

  “Founder Eclipse Menox, I agree with you!” he said.

  Eclipse extended her hand and grabbed his, and they shook hands to their new agreement. Then they began discussing the details of how their plan should be carried out. But unbeknownst to either of them, there was a third assassin sent to kill Rake. The third was meant to be a backup should the first two fail, so he had actually arrived much earlier and stayed hidden in the shadows all the while. After eavesdropping on the conversation, he had decided to abort. But he would not be returning to the clanmaster empty-handed. Two Founders conspiring to commit treason would make a valuable report indeed!

  The next day, Ray and Spirit arrived with 3rd River. Spirit felt the excitement of a hunt building up in him. He smelt the odour of an old foe, someone whom he had not encountered for quite a while. He could see Clover just up ahead standing over two dead bodies. The excitement energised him and he jumped off his war chariot even before it came to a complete stop. He dashed towards the bodies. He sniffed around. There was that familiar scent again, the scent of that female killer!

  Spirit sniffed around again. Yes! The scent was getting stronger. He began to run as fast as he could. He was on the hunt now. Finally, after all these weeks lazing around the palace and keeping Lance company at classes, he was back in the game. His nose was the seeker, his legs were the pursuit force and his fangs were to be the misery-ender!

  Ray and Clover left two streams to guard the dead bodies and ordered the rest to accompany them on horseback as they followed Spirit deeper into the forest. Spirit sprinted way ahead, in pursuit of the scent trail that was so familiar to him. He disappeared into the dense shrubbery, like a blur of white in an ocean of green.

  Dawn, meanwhile, knew that she was in trouble. Serious trouble! Losing a group of soldiers, even Sollenthars, was easy. However, losing a wolf who was zoned in on the hunt would be extremely difficult. Her scent was betraying her. With every step of her run and every drop of sweat that she produced, she was giving this wolf a map to her exact location. She would have to hide her scent somehow. But how? Would a river help? Could the wolf track her scent in a fast flowing river? Only one way to find out!

  Dawn knew this forest like the back of her hand. This was, after all, where she had grown up and lived almost her entire life. So she knew just where to run to. She knew just where to lead them to, so that they would never be able to discover The Lair. So she ran as fast as she could towards a waterfall that was way downstream of The Lair. Her only hope was that she would be able to get to it before Spirit caught up to her.

  Slowly, yet surely, the sound of gushing water became apparent to Spirit. He could hear it even before Dawn could, although she was much farther ahead. Now Spirit began to get worried. He knew that he would not be able to continue tracking her if she were to jump into a fast flowing river. The river would wash away her scent trails. Another failed hunt?

  No! It must not be! Spirit would not allow it to be! He would not fail again! Not against this old adversary! He had let Dawn get away too many times. This time, he would get his prey! He reached deep into his soul and drew upon the energy within it, and sprung forth with increased speed. His lungs felt like bursting, but he ignored it. He would get the female killer this time and he would end it. Too many a times had she been a threat to Ray and the rest of his pack. No more! He would end this all! This female killer was to be no more!

  Dawn saw the waterfall up ahead. She let out a shout of determination and burst forth with renewed energy. The sound of the waterfall was getting louder. Just a few more steps, and she would be free. Then she jumped!

  Spirit would not accept defeat. He saw the black clad human female jump. He refused to stop. Then he jumped!

  The fall was silent. Somehow it was as if time had slowed down. Then it felt like there was a sudden rush of air from beneath. Then came the explosion of impact. The loud splash deafened the ears. The sudden cold jolted the heart. Spirit was out of his comfort zone. He was out of his zone completely! This was not a world he was familiar with. All this wetness moved his body in weird, uncomfortable ways. It reminded him of the ‘Land of Whiteness’, where he had grown up. It brought back memories! Terrible, bitter memories! They were memories of his father’s death and of his sister’s as well.

  Spirit started kicking and paddling. He came to the surface, but just barely. He caught half a breath before he went down. It took him another struggle to reach the surface again. This time he managed a full breath before he went under again. He had lost sight of his adversary. He had lost her scent trail. The hunt was over! He was defeated! But he had a different set of concerns. How will he keep himself alive and how will he get himself back on dry land? He kept on kicking and paddling. He was getting comfortable with it now. His head was up above the surface of the river most of the time, though the current pulled him under occasionally.

  He kicked and paddled hard. There was a great sense of relief when his paw made contact ever so briefly with the solid soil below. He pushed on harder and finally managed to climb up a sandy bank. He took not but a few steps away from the water’s edge before he collapsed. He was still conscious. His eyes were still open. He was still lucid and alert, just extremely exhausted! Then he heard hurried footsteps. There was the scent again. It was pointless to panic. It was pointless to show concern. It was time to accept death graciously! He had been defeated by a worthy opponent. There would be no shame in his death. And the shiny tip of a blade appeared right in front of his face. This was it. This was his final moment. He took a deep slow breath and waited…

  The blade stayed where it was. She could not understand it. She was confused. For the first time in her life, Dawn Breven could not kill! She could not take a life! She could not take this life! This creature before her, the one that walked on four legs, whose fur was white as snow, was the worthiest opponent that she had ever faced. He was a hunter, just like her. She hunted for money, he hunted out of loyalty to a friend, or maybe to family. He was noble compared to her. He was too noble a creature to kill. So she just waved her index finger in front of Spirit’s face and whispered the words ‘no more!’ Then she disappeared into the green shrubbery just as she did countless times before.

  Ray and Clover had finally caught up with Spirit. Ray was so concerned with Spirit’s safety that he jumped off his horse before it came to a complete stop and rushed over to the white wolf like a concerned parent. This was the first time Spirit had dashed off so far ahead that Ray had lost sight of him. Then to see the white wolf all wet and sitting still, not even trying to shake off the water from his fur, told Ray that something was wrong. Spirit was physically fine, but lacked the usual ‘fire’ in his s
oul.

  But Clover understood. She recognised it immediately. It was the feeling of disappointment. It was a feeling of dejection. Spirit had failed to get his prey. He had failed to accomplish his mission. He felt useless. Clover identified with this feeling. This was how she felt when she broke away from her family tradition and became an Elementhar. This was how she felt when she had thought that her family would disown her. This was how her cousin Serene had made her feel throughout the years. So she walked over to the dejected Spirit, patted him on the forehead, scratched him behind the ears and gave him a look of ‘I understand, but it is all right, forget about it!’ Spirit’s tail began to wag and some of the missing ‘fire’ began returning to his soul. Then he shook his body and sprayed both Ray and Clover with water from his drenched fur. They both laughed while trying to shield themselves with their hands. Ray then let out a sigh of relief and started smiling. Spirit was going to be all right.

  On the 10th Morning of Fifth Month of Dry Season, a lonesome carriage arrived at Eastsands. It stopped right in front of The Spot. Its wooden door opened to allow its one and only passenger to disembark. Convian Rod Sayson tried his best to disembark gracefully from the carriage, but his cast-wrapped leg made it impossible. Rod stumbled out of the carriage and almost fell, but the carriage driver caught him in time. He thanked the driver and after regaining his balance, strode awkwardly into Command and Control; while two servians came out to tend to his luggage.

  Rod’s presence at The Spot caught Serene by surprise. She was delighted to see him, but she knew that if he had travelled here all the way from Fallsene City, surely something must be wrong.

  “Stubborn _ Minvian Sayvion is of this; for he will not appeal, despite Orgavian Lidell’s visit,” Rod said after following Serene out of Command and Control to a more ‘quieter’ part of the base.

  “Stubborn _ he was always of this, Convian Sayson; we knew that, did we not?” said Serene.

  “Mission _ of this, it proceeds as planned, even without Minvian Sayvion; for they will deploy in a few days time. Better _ it would have been of this if he had agreed to go with them, for Orgavian Lidell truly needs his help,” expressed Rod in a disappointed tone.

  Serene cracked an artificial smile.

  “War _ Minvian Sayvion is fighting his own of this, in a way that only he understands; for we had tried to help him but he had refused us. Help _ of this, what else can we offer to Orgavian Lidell and the mission?” she said.

  “Help _ of this, we have given everything that is required, for your family have contributed much gold and manpower and I have exhausted my contacts and resources for weapons and information. Stage _ of this is set, all that is left to do is to wait and see,” said Rod.

  “Mercenaries _ of them, would they be reliable?” asked Serene.

  “Mercenaries _ of them, the ones whom I have introduced are, and I guarantee their reliability with my life, for these are our former comrades who have retired from the Provincial Guards and the Royal Guards,” answered Rod.

  “Mercenaries _ of them of the others?” asked Serene.

  “Mercenaries _ of them whom Orgavian Lidell has brought in seemed reliable, but the ones whom some of the others have brought in seemed suspicious to me,” answered Rod.

  “Warn _ should we do of this to Orgavian Lidell?” asked Serene.

  “Need _ there is none of this because he shared my concerns and told me he would make emergency plans in the event these mercenaries became unreliable or traitorous,” answered Rod casually.

  The gentle breeze blew withered leaves onto the table where Serene and Rod were seated. Serene wore a worried expression. Rod’s face was not one of great confidence either.

  “Plan _ did theirs of this sound good to you?” asked Serene.

  “Plan _ of this, theirs was as best as possible because it was simple; to ride hard and fast into Serpentia, attack the remote labour camps, mines and plantations of the battlelords and bring back as many Fallsians as they can before the battlelords can bring their armies to stop them,” explained Rod.

  “Fallsians _ what of them who are enslaved in the Serpentian cities, forts and strongholds?” asked Serene.

  “Fallsians _ of them who are enslaved in these areas will not be rescued,” answered Rod.

  “Fallsians _ of them who are in the cities, forts and strongholds; they are to be abandoned?” objected a disbelieving Serene.

  “Victory _ a small of this is better than a big defeat, so it is unfortunate that these Fallsians will have to be abandoned,” Rod pointed out.

  Serene could only keep quiet. She could not deny the tactical logic in Rod’s statement.

  The Fallsian sky turned to darkness as night fell. It was a moonless night due to the thick cloud cover. Dawn sat on a thick branch of a huge tree, staring at the dark clouds above. It would rain soon, she knew. She would be wet and cold, but there was nothing she could do about it. Building a shelter, even a temporary one, could give away her position or allow her to be tracked. The best she could hope for was that the leaves of this tree would break the force of the rain. She took out the small canvas blanket and wrapped it around her head and torso the best she could and waited for the inevitable.

  There was a sudden whoosh and a thud; and she turned to see an arrow embedded in the trunk just a finger’s length away from her. She recognised it. It was an arrow used by the Shadow Deathmerchant Clan. But there was something different about it. A piece of paper was wrapped around its shaft. She strained her eyes to see into the darkness, hoping to catch a glimpse of the one who shot the arrow, but to no avail. She recovered the paper from the arrow shaft but could not read its contents as it was dark. She would have to wait until morning before she could find out what it was all about. Then, as if on queue, a brilliant flash cut across the sky, a heavy boom followed shortly thereafter and the tears of the heavens began to fall.

  Morning took forever to come for Dawn, who was still sitting on the tree branch soaking wet and cold. But at last there was enough sunlight to read the piece of paper. A light smile broke across her face. The note was from her uncle. It stated Rake and Eclipse’s intention to abandon the Shadow Deathmerchant Clan and start anew. Rake was inviting Dawn to join them. He had requested that Dawn meet with him and Eclipse to plan their exodus from The Lair, as it would be very tricky to move the large number of women and children without raising the suspicion of Clanmaster Collart. Rake had set the meeting to be in two days, at noon. The venue that he had chosen was at the boulder where Dawn had hid her sling bag. This location, Dawn thought, was not very secure. However, she knew her uncle was betting on avoiding suspicion rather than establishing firm security. Any meeting point too far away from The Lair would raise suspicion as Rake would have been gone for too long.

  A renewed sense of hope swept over Dawn. Finally, her uncle was doing the right thing. And together with Eclipse, they could start a new version of the Shadow Deathmerchant Clan. A cleaner and more proper version which would fight for ‘the cause’ as how it should have been. Nay! It would be a more deserving version which could finally earn the right to serve the noble ‘cause’. Dawn’s life would have a purpose again.

  Meanwhile, at The Lair, quiet words were being passed around. The original women and children from the Ten Betrayed Villages were secretly asked whether they would stay or join the exodus. Those who agreed were told to pack lightly and be prepared to move at a moment’s notice. Those who did not were threatened with torture and death should they choose to reveal even the very existence of this ‘discussion’. But being assassins and close relatives of assassins, being discreet came naturally and whatever threats they received, although taken seriously, were accepted as a daily aspect of life.

  As it turned out, a large number of the clan members had agreed to leave. Like Rake and Eclipse, they had begun to realise that the clanmaster had deviated from the original cause. They had begun to realise that the clanmaster’s decisions of late were not even for their welfare or
benefit. And with the arrival of these ‘outsiders’, these strangers who had contracted themselves to the clan for money, the original clan members felt pushed aside. They had strangers who had lived in The Lair but a few months, bossing them around whereas they had live here for decades! They felt as though they were being colonised by these new strangers. Their decision was clear and easy! They chose to leave!

  The following morning saw Clover and her subordinates arriving back at The Spot on horses which Ray and 3rd River had rode out on. Ray and 3rd River would continue the patrols on foot while Clover and 2nd River would rest and recover their lost strength and energy. Although she was tired, Clover chose not to retire to her tent when she saw Rod and Serene having breakfast at the ‘quieter’ part of the base. She dismissed her subordinates, grabbed a plateful of breakfast and walked over to where Rod and Serene were.

  “Nature’s wisdom_ may you have of this, cousin, Rod!” greeted Clover.

  “Nature’s wisdom_ may you have of this, cousin!” greeted Serene.

  “Nature’s wisdom_ may you have of this, Minvian Genox!” replied Rod.

  “Here _ why are you of this?” asked Clover curiously.

  “Liberation Raid _ I am here of this and also of the issue of Thorn Sayvion,” answered Rod.

  “Liberation Raid _ yes, my father had mentioned of this; so how does it go?” enquired Clover.

  “Liberation Raid _ of this goes as planned except without the participation of Thorn Sayvion,” answered Rod.

  “Participate _ why has he not chosen to do of this?” asked Clover, who had never met Thorn, but had heard Serene speak of him before.