by K. F. Breene
“Smart enough to be ignored, yes.” The doctor walked by with a shaking head.
“Put some clothes on,” Shanti told the others.
“Shanti, a word?” Sanders said, glancing at Mela and then ripping his eyes skyward. He moved out of the line of sight.
Shanti glanced at Kallon, silently letting him know she was stepping out, and then left the room, closing the door behind her. Sanders stood in the hall, his body stiff, his mind uncomfortable. Shanti couldn’t tell if it was physical or emotional. Whichever it was, Sanders was hiding it behind an impatient mask.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” Shanti said, stopping next to him.
Sanders’ jaw clenched. “I told the Captain I wouldn’t berate you for dragging all the women into your folly. I swore I wouldn’t mention that you and I are going to have it out for involving Junice in those plots. And I planned not to let it slip, in a mushy sort of way, that I am eternally grateful to you for saving my wife’s life. That is a debt I will never be able to repay, but I will keep trying for the rest of my life. I’ll guard your back like family.” He cleared his throat. “So I’ll just keep all of that to myself.”
Warmth and affection spread through Shanti, something that would probably make Sanders uncomfortable. She tried to clasp her hands behind her back, but her shoulder ached. Instead, she tightened her lips and said, “Mhm.”
“What I did want to say is…I don’t know what your deal is with Mister Striking in there, but if you play the Captain false, I will rip your limbs off and beat you with them. If I have to sneak up on you to do so, I will. I have no problem sucker-punching a woman if that woman is you, got it?”
Shanti laughed. “You will have your work cut out for you, guarding the back of someone with no limbs…”
“Don’t make me have to accept that challenge.” Sanders glanced down the hall and lowered his voice. When his gaze hit Shanti’s again, it was serious. “Look, the Captain has been through a lot of shit in his life, and it’s about to get worse. He hasn’t really had a break. Now, for whatever reason, he likes you. Don’t ask me why—you’re a huge pain the ass. But he does. So do the man a favor—if you aren’t on his level, break it off. Don’t drag him around by the nose while you shack up with some pretty foreign man, and don’t make him look a fool. That’s all I’m saying.”
“Kallon and I have a tie similar to you and the Captain, we just touch more. All my people touch more, or haven’t you noticed with Rohnan and I? I have no romantic ties.”
Sanders made a sound like “Hmph.” He took a step away. “Well, if you plan to get touchy-feely with a bunch of guys, you should expect the Captain to lose his shit. I’m just throwing that out there.”
Shanti laughed and headed back into the room to grab the other two.
“And put some damn clothes on! You don’t need to go flashing at the whole city!”
As Sanders strode down the hall, obviously trying to hide a limp, Shanti looked down at herself. “I’m covered.” It was then she noticed the draft in the back. “Mostly covered, anyway.”
After she had bathed and dressed, Shanti walked across the city slowly, trying not to favor her right leg. The wound throbbed, her head pounded, and her body felt as weak as a water reed, but she refused to show weakness in a city that was mourning.
Kallon and Rohnan flanked her, quiet and somber. The rest of her people walked behind, knowing where they were headed, and giving their support.
“S’am.” Valencia passed with a scrape down her face and wearing a plain brown dress. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying, but her face was determined. Both sorrow and pride emanated from her.
“Shoo-lan.” A man with a bandage around his head touched his fist to his chest.
“Shoo-lan.” Another man nodded slightly. Yet another touched his fist to his heart.
As she walked down the lane, people slowed, watching her. Those in her path veered to the side, saying her name and nodding or touching their chest.
“S’am.” Marc jogged across the street, walking away from a woman with her arm in a sling. He glanced at Rohnan, gave a tick of his head in hello, and then flinched when he met Kallon’s eyes.
Kallon dropped back with the others.
“Look, S’am,” Marc said, walking close to her. “There’s something you should know before you go over there.” Marc lowered his voice. “The men aren’t really pleased that the women put themselves in harm’s way. I mean, most are grateful, of course. We all realize that without them, we wouldn’t have been able to take back the city. But we do things a certain way here. Change is hard.”
“What’s your point?”
“My point is, you might just…be a bit delicate where the women using weapons are concerned, you know? Let things come around gradually.”
“War doesn’t allow for gradual. You can’t let a person spread their wings when you need them, and expect them to be content to let you clip their wings again when you’re done with them. They were needed, they rose to the challenge, and now you will need to rise to the challenge as well.”
“Chulan doesn’t have subtlety, Marc.” Rohnan’s voice was colored with humor.
Sayas and Mela both chuckled.
“Okay, but if you go trying to train people’s mothers and wives right in front of their faces, they’re going to get pissed, S’am,” Marc said, flustered. “You’re going to get pushback. That’s all I’m saying.”
“Marc, some of those women are excellent archers. If they can stand on the wall and keep this city from being taken again, then I will make sure they are trained to do so. Ruisa has proven that women of this city can fight. Let some of the others prove their value as well.”
“Please don’t make me train with my mom, S’am,” Marc whined. “She’d embarrass me.”
Rohnan started to laugh, passing on what Marc had said to those who didn’t speak the language. More chuckles sounded before her.
The smile drifted from Shanti’s face when she saw the large expanse of park up ahead. A few trees were scarred and had been hacked into. The ground was torn up with clumps of mud and mounds of dirt. In the middle, laid out between the trees with their hands on their chests and daisies on their closed eyes, were the fallen.
Shanti took a deep breath, not allowing guilt to invade the moment. The fighters here didn’t deserve that. She knew they wouldn’t accept it.
Crying floated through the air. Many kneeled or stood between their friends and family, mourning with red eyes or tears streaming down their cheeks. A few just stood and stared out at nothing, eyes unfocused and faces utterly slack. Emotion and loss had dragged them under.
Rohnan faltered, grabbing on to Mela to stay upright. Shanti and the rest of her people closed down their shields, trying to muffle the intense grief that slapped them.
Shanti made her way through the dead slowly, looking on peaceful faces, many of which she’d never seen before. She stopped when she came to the first female, a woman in her later years with graying hair and a lined face. Tucked into her hands was a bow so worn and used it was obvious she’d been working with it for many years.
“She loved archery.” Shanti looked up to find a man the same age as the woman. His eyes were red and swollen. Beside him stood a man of Shanti’s age with a bandage wrapped around his upper arm. “She was the best shot in the family.” The older man smiled fondly. “She’d always said she would be the best in the army if they had allowed her to fight.”
The older man put his hand on the younger man’s shoulder, looking down on his wife.
Shanti moved on, slowly, giving her respects. When she came to a middle-aged man, the woman standing with two children beside him said, “He felt helpless when they dragged him from the house. He tried to protect us. He was worried of what the Graygual would do.” She sniffed. Her lip started to tremble. “They chained him in the park with the other army men. He got to defend his city in the end, though. He protected us in the end.” She squeezed her children to her.
Shanti continued until she saw the Honor Guard gathered off to the right. They stood with miserable faces and bowed heads. Shanti felt Rohnan’s hand on her shoulder. She’d been dreading this.
She stopped beside Daniels and Tomous. She looked down on Tobias’ blank face.
“He fought hard,” Tomous said in a grave voice. “He was always ready with a joke.”
Shanti nodded slowly, memorizing his features. Tears came to her eyes, threatening to overcome her.
A low hum started behind her. And then around her, as her people spread out around the body. The humming grew louder as Shanti’s emotion rose, before turning into a sorrowful melody. Her people’s voices climbed, singing the song of the dead. The song of the lost. Singing to the Elders to take the fighter’s soul and place him among the stars so that he might guide their feet in battle.
Kallon sang out the words, his voice deep and clear. A few others took up the harmony as her people pushed in close, wrapping their arms around each other. They pulled Daniels, Tomous, and the Honor Guard into their embrace, forming two tight circles around Tobias’ body. Soon the entire field was quiet, listening to the solemn tune. When the song came to the end, Kallon sang it once more, this time for the other mourners.
Finally, with tears streaming down her face, Shanti said goodbye to Tobias for the last time. “I will miss you, my friend.” She entwined her fingers in Rohnan’s and moved on through the rest of the fallen.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Two days after the battle, Shanti saw Cayan standing quietly outside his mansion, looking up at the ruin. The front right had been blasted out, showing the scarred and blackened interior. The fire caused by the explosion had eaten through to the upper floor and damaged half the rooms on that side. The other end of the house was mostly intact, thankfully. The Hunter had kept good care of it while he had been there.
Shanti walked up beside him quietly and slipped her hand into his. He took his hand back and threw his big arm around her shoulders, hugging her close. Give the man a little…
“It could’ve been a lot worse,” Cayan said in a somber tone. “We lost people, but we could’ve lost a whole city. I hate to say it, but we were lucky it was the Hunter and not someone else. He was after us. He was content to keep the city in order while he waited.”
“What will you do now?” she asked quietly.
“Rebuild my house. Clean up our city.”
Shanti felt the bubble of joy at our city, but just as quickly stiffened. She needed to talk to him about their plans. Her plans. She needed to tell him that she couldn’t stay. Her duty wouldn’t allow it. And she needed to do it now before it became any harder.
She’d opened her mouth to spill it out when they heard shouting.
Her people filed into the street a moment before she threw up her shields and clued in to the minds walking quietly into Cayan’s lands. She glanced at Kallon, the one chosen to monitor their surroundings while everyone else got a needed break. “You’re getting slow. We should’ve known about intruders before the sentries.”
“He knew.” Kallon pointed at Cayan. “He is monitoring at all times. I did not want to…provoke him.”
Kallon didn’t want to speed up their penis-measuring contest before Cayan was totally healed, he meant. Shanti rolled her eyes.
“He is trying to do too much,” Mela said. “You must scale him back for his health.”
Shanti blew out a breath. That was easier said than done. Cayan wasn’t a man to rest after his city had been taken by another. She should’ve known he wouldn’t shut off. It was another thing she’d need to talk to him about.
“It’s the Shadow,” Cayan said in a monotone as he continued to look up at his house. He looked at her a moment later, and then turned toward the gate. His eyes and mind both warred with loss and exhaustion. “They made great time.”
As they started away, Shanti’s people, as one, moved behind them, fanned out, and completely synchronized.
“Not even the Shadow work together like your people,” Cayan said in a low tone as Sanders came jogging into view.
“I just heard we have visitors, sir.” Sanders glanced around them. “Looks like we don’t need the sentries as much.”
“It’s the Shadow,” Shanti said as they neared the gate. “Urgency rides their movements.”
“The Shadow?” Sanders fell in beside them. “They shouldn’t be here for another half-week.”
“Sir! Sir!” A man jogged at them with a harried expression. “The intruders have huge animals with them! Should we take them down?”
“No.” Cayan stopped just inside the gate. “They’re friendly. The Shadow people come to aid us.”
The news of who came spread quietly until the word “Shadow” was whispered within waiting crowds. A few women, including Maggie and Alena, showed up in pants and with bows, coming from practicing with their weapons.
Sanders mouth turned into a thin line. He was pretending he didn’t notice. Cayan kept his face completely neutral. He’d already admitted that having more archers was a great thing, but including them in training would be tricky. A great many men had grudgingly accepted Shanti into their midst, but that was because she could easily kill them, and she wasn’t their kind. They could ignore her. Having their wives training, or their daughters, made more than a few uncomfortable. They joined the army to keep their loved ones safe, not to fight beside them and possibly see them die.
Three black shapes came sprinting through the open gates.
“What the—” Men tripped as they back-pedaled, pulling out their swords. Maggie nocked her arrow as Alena dashed out of sight.
The three cats bounded up to Cayan and Shanti, playful. Midnight and Phaebus, Cayan’s animals, gave their feline roars and nearly pushed him over. Shanti’s, which still hadn’t been named, if she didn’t count calling it nuisance, rubbed its forehead against her legs and paused as she bent to scratch it.
A man with flaming red hair and a fatigued expression led the progression of Shadow warriors into the city. Three huge beasts lumbered in the back, the fur on their backs standing on end with the fear and worry they sensed in Cayan’s people.
“Chosen,” Sonson said as he greeted Cayan, a relieved smile gracing his face. He looked at Shanti. “Chulan. You didn’t wait for us?”
Cayan stepped forward and took his outstretched hand. Since there were two Chosen, they often called Cayan Captain or Chosen in his language, and Shanti Chosen in the Shumas language. “Welcome. We’re still cleaning things up.”
“We ran into some of the enemy,” Sonson said, his expression turning grave. “The cats and beasts got most of them, but we took down a few with our bows.”
“On the way?” Cayan asked as some of the stable hands jogged up, their eyes wary as they looked over the beasts.
“Yes, but also outside of your lands. None of them were officers, though. Looks like you didn’t get everyone that invaded.” Sonson’s eyes sparkled with malice. “Xandre has something planned, I’m sure of it. He is trying to bar the Shadow from the land while locking you in. Our time is short.”
Cayan’s eyes turned hard. “We’ll need to plan the next steps. But for now, let’s get you settled, and a warm meal.”
Sonson sighed gratefully. “I’m ashamed we weren’t in time to help, but a meal would be just the thing.”
After Shanti and Cayan left the Shadow to get settled, passing them off to Cayan’s assistants and planning to meet up after they were fed and rested, Cayan walked Shanti toward the park slowly with the cats staying close. Once in the trees, and apparently ignoring her people who didn’t plan to be separated, he stopped and turned to her. The failing light cast his handsome face in soft light, easing the lines of stress and fatigue.
“Things are changing now,” Cayan said in a low tone. “Some of the Duke’s men are going home to their families, but some are staying. They know that the war follows you. They want to be a part of it. So will others. Things will ch
ange even more in the future, but I want us to face it together, Shanti. I want us to deal with things as a team.”
“We already do, Cayan.”
“You’ve made this city yours,” he went on, as if not hearing her. “You’ve earned the trust and respect of my people. More, the Women’s Circle seems to think you are their voice. I’ve been told that they will talk to you from now on, not me.” He paused for a moment, his gaze delving into hers. His Gift wound within her tightly. “That place is reserved for my wife.”
Tingles went down her spine.
“I approve of their choice.” A ghost of a smile graced his full lips. His dimples amplified the handsomeness of his face. “Marry me, Shanti, and lead this city with me. The Shadow view us as one entity, as do I. As do my people, after the battle. I would like to make that official, with your permission.”
Shanti looked up with a dumb expression. That had completely come out of nowhere. Her mind raced. Flashes of war and pain crowded her memories; she felt the deaths of her parents, and then her people. What she’d told Rohnan in Clintos came back to her. Xandre was stripping everything from her that she held dear. If this city became partly hers, it would become an even bigger target.
She opened her mouth to answer, knowing what she should say, and what she was tempted to say. Before she could utter the words, though, she heard, “Captain!”
Cayan’s assistant hastened up with a piece of paper. He held it out. “You and Shanti have received a message.”
With a furrowed brow, Cayan took the slip of paper and unfolded it. He studied the contents for a second before handing it to her silently. His eyes were troubled.
Shanti felt her people drift closer, bursts of fear and curiosity emanating from them—they would have to get used to predators treated like pets. She read the note out loud: “The final stage has come. It is time for the Chosen to wander. You must fulfill your destiny. To fail in this will mean all of our deaths.” It was signed Burson.
“No pressure, huh, Burson?” Shivers raced through Shanti’s body. Her remaining people hadn’t reached Cayan’s city yet, not to mention the Shadow, and she had no idea how to get a message to anyone who was traveling. She needed all of them. She needed their Gifts and their fighting ability. The Seers had been adamant about the number and type of people who would need to be included in the last battle.