Resurrected Soldiers: The Tyrus Chronicle - Book Three

by Simon, Joshua P.

  She shook her head.

  Really Ava? That’s what you’re going to think on? If the Geneshans really want this hellhole so badly, then let them have it.

  She turned her attention to where Abigail helped Nason clean half a dozen rabbits. Like Ava, the girl’s connection to sorcery had improved. Though for Abigail, her strength was in her ability to connect with animals on some base level.

  On the road with resources scarce, Ava and the girl’s mother Dinah, convinced Abigail to find creatures that had survived the eruptions. If she could influence them to approach the group, they could be trapped and eaten.

  The girl might be the most important member of our group at the moment.

  “Aunt Ava!”

  She wheeled as Zadok came running toward her, waving his hands furiously. She caught lots of movement back by camp near the others. Swearing, she ran toward him, knowing immediately that whatever Zadok had to say couldn’t be good.

  “We need to leave now,” he huffed.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “It’s Damaris—”

  Ava went cold.

  “What about her?”

  “She killed a Geneshan scout.”

  Her eyes widened. “What!”

  “Just a few seconds ago. She just jumped right up, grabbed a spear, and dove into some nearby bushes. By the time everyone went in after her she was standing over a dead Geneshan. It was unbelievable. No one else had heard a thing.”

  “Crap. There could be others nearby. We need to leave now,” she said hurrying along.

  “Isn’t that what I just said?”

  She gave him a look. “Not fast enough.” She called out while running. “Everyone pack up and start moving now!” she yelled. “Massa take point.”

  Massa replied. “Which way are we going?”

  “Away from the blasted army that’s camped behind us,” she said pointing.

  He stared at her dumbly.

  Her arm shot out. “Ao’s teats! West! Go west!”

  She stopped next to the Geneshan scout’s body as her fingers began to crackle. A bloody hole marked the center of its chest.

  Ao-be-damned, that’s good stabbing.

  She wasn’t sure if she had enough power in her to dispose of the scout without leaving a trace.

  But I can at least hide it.

  She cursed her muted powers.

  She sighed, thinking about how those parlor tricks had helped conceal their movements thus far.

  Better than nothing, I guess.

  “Good grief, Zadok,” she muttered to herself. “Can’t even gripe to myself without thinking on the positive.”

  * * *

  Hours later, when Ava finally decided that no one was after them, she caught up to the main body of the group. Exhausted from covering their back trail, she decided to slow their pace. Not stop, but slow. If nothing else, the fear of discovery had spurred many to move at speeds that they hadn’t been able to muster in weeks. Ava wanted to use that fear to her advantage and make up for lost time.

  They’ll sleep better tonight too which should cut down on complaints. A win for everyone. Or at least two wins for me.

  Ava caught up with Dinah. Abigail and Nadav walked beside her. Their heads swiveled about, searching what remained of the forest around them with curious eyes. There was almost no brush. Well, almost no living brush. Bushes that Ava imagined had once been green and full of life, wilted low, their branches and stems dry, breaking off easily as those in the group pushed them aside to make better haste.

  Ava readied a spell to hide those breaks. She was tired from casting concealment spells most of the day, but all her efforts over the last few weeks had improved her stamina and control when it came to sorcery.

  It’s a good thing with the mess they’re making. A blind man could track us.

  She looked up. Not all the trees were dead or dying, a few even looked like they might be making headway on survival, which was a pleasant surprise. The tiny patches of yellow and green against so much brown and gray stood out like a rainbow after a spring rain. Maybe it was her imagination, but there even seemed to be a smell of new life in the air cutting through the lingering scents of wood smoke and sulphur.

  The smallest bit of hope came to life in her chest. Is the worst truly over and the land beginning to heal? Is the world not really ending?

  She shook her head. She knew the dangers of letting that hope blossom. This new life could all end with the next eruption.

  “Dinah, could I borrow your kids for a moment?”

  Boaz’s wife’s eyes narrowed. A hand went to each of the two youth’s shoulders. “Depends.”

  Ava smiled. Nadav was not blood, but since rescuing him from the briars, he had become family.

  “Don’t worry. Nothing dangerous. Just need them to pass the word to Massa and then everyone else that we can slow our pace a bit.”

  Dinah nodded. “That’s fine.”

  “Good,” said Ava. She instructed the two kids. “Tell everyone to be more careful with the bushes too. We’re trying to avoid notice, not draw it by leaving a trail a mile wide.”

  “No problem,” said the boy, running behind Abigail a moment later.

  “How are they doing?” Ava asked when it was just her and Dinah.

  “Better than most. Some days better than me, to be honest. They miss Boaz.” She paused. It was obvious the mention of her husband’s name had gotten to her. “And Nadav still has some nightmares about what happened to his family, as well as the briars. But, he and Abigail will endure. They’re both strong and lean on each other as brother and sister.”

  “It’s good that they have each other.”

  She thought of Tyrus and wished she could talk to him again, just for a little while. Not even about anything of substance either, just long enough to pick at him and see his raised eyebrow.

  “You all right?” asked Dinah.

  She blinked. “Yeah. Just tired.”

  “You should try to get to sleep early tonight.”

  Ava started to give her a look, but stopped when she saw the hint of a smile tug at Dinah’s mouth.

  Ava snorted.

  “Sorry, I know it was a stretch. Hard to make a decent joke these days.”

  Ava patted her arm. “Nope. You did good.” She looked up as Abigail and Nadav came running back down the line.

  Gods, those kids are fast.

  “Well, I should probably check on a few more people,” said Ava.

  I don’t do enough of that.

  “How about you just worry about one right now?” Dinah asked, nodding over to Damaris. “She’s been walking alone like that since she killed that Geneshan. Won’t let anyone go near her.”

  “What makes you think she’ll let me get close?”

  “Because you have a tendency to do as you please,” she said, unable to hide the amusement in her comment.

  Ava smiled again. “That I do.”

  They parted and Ava caught up with Damaris.

  The woman walked with her head down, hands clenched tightly at her side. There was little swing to her arms, muscles bunched. Most of her body appeared rigid, even her long blonde hair bounced little across her shoulders despite the up and down steps over the uneven terrain.

  Though Damaris looked tense, something was obviously on her mind, but she was not distracted. Her eyes darted across the ground, stepping carefully so her stride did not once falter. It was a level of focus that Ava had not seen from her before.

  As Ava moved closer, she saw that dried blood spattered Damaris’s bunched hands, dark against her light skin. The blood stood out more on her faded green dress.

  Ava looked a hundred yards ahead to a small patch of rock that jutted out from the forest floor.

  She cleared her throat. “We can st
op up ahead by those boulders if you’d like? It would give you a chance to change your clothes and clean up.”

  “Don’t make any special concessions for me. I can manage,” Damaris muttered.

  “I know. But I thought you might want to wear something without blood on it. Or at least wash your hands?”

  She shrugged. “I’m fine.”

  “You don’t look fine. I’m surprised you haven’t started to cramp yet as tightly as you’re clenching your body.”

  Damaris looked at Ava, a confused expression on her face. Then she glanced down at her hands, blinked, and finally opened them. “Better?” she asked.

  “You tell me.”

  “Look, I’d really prefer to be alone right now.”

  For a moment, Ava thought about giving Damaris what she wanted. Who was she to pry and tell someone else what they should or should not talk about? She hated when people did that to her. Tyrus was worst of all. It’s not that he wouldn’t allow her to sulk or be contemplative. He just wanted her to talk about what was on her mind, saying it was better to have a conversation about what bothered her with someone other than herself.

  As much as I hate to admit it, I’d feel better after I calmed down from the anger of him prying out my worries.

  Unsurprisingly, the idiot rarely follows his own advice. I’d push some, but not enough when he got quiet. Maybe I should have. Maybe it would have helped him carry his burdens, regardless of whether he hated me or not.

  “I’m waiting for you to tell me what you’re thinking about,” said Ava bluntly.

  “Didn’t I just say I wanted to be alone?” scowled Damaris.

  “You did. But I’m just going to ignore that comment.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I’m stubborn.”

  The silence between them returned. Ava worried that Damaris might be just as stubborn, which meant that for all of Ava’s desire to get her to open up, the woman would clamp down harder out of spite.

  Then what? Hold her down to get her to talk. Yeah, that would go over well.

  Damaris spoke softly, “I killed a man today.”

  “You did.”

  “I’ve never done that before.”

  Ava frowned. “You haven’t? I would have thought you had when those raiders attacked us on the road after Uman. When me and Tyrus came up on everyone after taking care of the attackers behind us, there were bodies everywhere.”

  Damaris shrugged. “I guess it’s possible. But I’m not sure. I had a bow then, releasing arrows from a good distance away. I don’t know if what I did killed anyone.”

  “And this was close. Personal.”

  “Yes. No denying what happened or passing the credit on to someone else. I stabbed a man in his back as he tried to sneak away.” She paused. “Twice in the back,” she added. “Then he rolled over and I stabbed him again in the chest. Then he went still. I didn’t think I could do something like that.”

  “Most people don’t ever think they can. It was like that for me the first time I killed someone. But you do what you have to. Had you let him go, we’d already be dead or captured. No question about it.”

  “I know. And I’m not questioning whether I made the right call.”

  “So what exactly is bothering you then?”

  “The fact that I didn’t feel like I expected I would. It felt . . . right.”

  Understanding hit Ava like a mace. Of course. Why didn’t I see that?

  “That’s reasonable.”

  She frowned. “Is it?”

  “Sure. You’ve been tossed about a lot these last few months. You’ve had to watch acquaintances, friends, and your father die.” She gestured in front of them. “And none of us knows what we’ll face ahead. You were in control when you killed the scout. You saw a problem and you acted. Not on someone else’s order. You did it because you thought it was the best thing to do in that instant. That can be very empowering.”

  Damaris clenched and unclenched her jaw, mouth pressed tight as she considered Ava’s words. She exhaled slowly. “I don’t want to be a killer.”

  “Killing one man who would have killed you if given the chance doesn’t make you a killer. It makes you human. I’d have done the same.” She paused, thinking of how to make her point sink in more. “Tyrus would have done the same. Your father would have too.”

  “It’s just . . .” she paused. “I keep replaying what happened in my mind, noticing details I didn’t even think about in the moment.”

  “That’s natural too.”

  “Is it natural to want to do it again?”

  Ava cocked her head to the side. “What do you mean?”

  “People like that took my father, forced your brother away, caused Turine nothing but problems for over a decade, built the stupid artifact that caused this mess. I finally had someone to focus that anger on and it felt good. I want to make someone else hurt. I never used to think things like that.” She shook her head. “This is all so confusing. It’s what I’ve been trying to figure out.”

  “Definitely heady stuff,” Ava admitted. “But again, you’re not the first person to think about such things. If I had the power to do it, I’d march back to that Geneshan camp and wipe out the entire army without batting an eye.”

  “How do you deal with these feelings?”

  She shrugged. “I just accept that this is my life whether I like it or not. Whether I understand it or not.”

  “There isn’t another option?” Damaris’s tone seemed to suggest that she was begging for an answer that would put her mind at ease.

  “Another one comes to mind. But it isn’t one I’d recommend.”

  “What is it?”

  “The other option is that someone kills you. Or you kill yourself. That sort of puts an immediate end to any thoughts running through your head.”

  Damaris snorted. “Especially if how you die is a mace to the temple, I imagine.”

  Ava came to a halt and gave the woman a look.

  Damaris did the same, and frowned. “Sorry. That was probably not the best joke to make.”

  Ava smiled, patted her on the arm. “In war, there are no bad jokes. Anything that warrants a smile is welcome.”

  “Good.”

  “So, this might not be the best time to bring this up, but then again, I don’t know when would be better. . . If you’re interested, I can show you tricks with a spear other than the basics Tyrus taught everyone. You know, just in case.”

  Damaris bobbed her head. “I think I’d like that.”

  CHAPTER 15

  I hate to say that I used training as a way to relieve my frustration and worry, but I did just that for several days as we continued our march to Hol.

  Training never really ends. Especially when you have a commander who’s been known to overdose on the pessimistic and worrisome nature of life. Put that commander in ankle chains and his mood only darkens.

  I helped smooth over the vitriol from the men as I participated in the drills with them.

  Though I was far from happy with where we were, I also knew I couldn’t keep pushing them the way I was.

  The dinner bell was still an hour away from ringing, yet I called for an end to the day’s drilling. That confused everyone.

  I gathered myself up and shouted. “I know I’ve been working you hard, but it’s for good reason. I know many of you dislike me anyway. Well, I don’t really care about that.”

  Ira was nearby, giving me a cross look. I can only imagine what he was thinking. Probably something like, “That ain’t much of a rally speech, Ty.”

  I continued. “However, despite your dislike for me, you’ve put in the effort and you’ve improved tenfold.” Not a lie. They had improved quite a bit. They were up to decent instead of crap. “So, I’m letting you off early tonight. Get some grub. Get some r
est. Play some games. Do whatever. Still, no alcohol though.” A couple grumbles after that. “An hour extra sleep in the morning as well,” I added.

  Most of the grumbles turned to grins. That was enough for me.

  * * *

  I walked off alone to the edge of camp. I decided that I needed a small break as well. Time to clear my head, at least of the army.

  As I did, the space quickly filled with different worries, those of my kids and Ava. I worried about Nason, Sivan, Damaris, and the others as well. I tried not to dwell overly long on Damaris. I had enough to worry about with Ava and the kids. The last thing I needed was someone else. Especially when I considered what had happened to Lasha during the Geneshan War.

  I shook away thoughts of her.

  As I stood out past the pickets, staring out at the twisting, gnarled landscape, I allowed my thoughts to go to the only family I had left in the world. They could be dead and I might not learn of if for months, or years, if ever. I might be dead myself before I could ever see them again, despite my promise to them otherwise.

  Ira used to say that a man needs to make do with the cards he’s dealt. His point was that a player who knew how to bluff or think could make any hand a winner. It was good advice that could be applied to life. Still, it would be nice if just once I could get a decent set of cards to play with. I was tired of bluffing, tired of working so hard just to survive.

  The anger of my situation got the best of me. I raised my foot and slammed it down on a nearby branch. It snapped, and I ground the pieces into the dirt.

  “Molak-be-damned, I just wanted some sense of normalcy with my family. Is that so much to ask?” I gritted out.

  The thought of losing Ava, and especially my kids, was too much. I couldn’t lose them. Not after already losing Lasha. If there was anything that would break me, losing my family would do it.

  “I’d rather be dead myself,” I said in a whisper.

  My chest clenched then, my breathing grew rapid. I dropped to a knee, legs feeling weak, hands shaking.

  Alone, I bowed my head as emotion overcame me.