by C. R. Daems
"How will two extra guards help?"
"The only way we will be successful is if we can get the army inside the city gates. With a Cheyo Guard, I may have a chance."
"I don't understand, but you seem to know what you are doing," Bradley said, appearing content to wait and see. In fact, I didn't have a plan. I just knew it was the best I could hope for from the Trasslat Monastery and maybe better than having a Monk when all was said and done.
As we prepared to leave the next day, Sonya and Joanna appeared.
"Lady Shelly, you know Sonya and this is Joanna, who is also a Cheyo Guard. She is assigned to protect you.
"Why?"
"So I don't worry when I can't be around when trouble arises."
"Welcome Joanna, you'll have to tell me a little about yourself when we get time." Shelly scowled at me. "Where are you off to?"
"I thought I'd scout ahead. The Sirens seem to be very well informed," I said, feeling better leaving knowing Joanna guarded Shelly. "Sonya, how are you at running?"
She smiled. "Probably not as good as you, but I'm in good condition."
"We’ll take Greystone in case you get tired." I put the bridle on her and then began a slow jog in the direction of Arucci. Leaving before the troops did would keep us an hour or more ahead of them.
"Ride Greystone," I said to Sonya early that afternoon. "You've done far better than I did on my first training runs with the Ojaza. She nodded and mounted, showing she felt she wasn't in competition with me and had nothing to prove. We saw nothing and stopped early to wait for Bradley and the troops to arrive.
"You're impressive," Sonya said. "I can understand how a warrior can outrun a horse. It doesn’t have that kind of endurance, especially with a man and saddle on its back."
"I hated running when I was with those training to be warriors, but it has proven a life saver." As we talked, the dust from the mounted troops could be seen, and sometime later Bradley and Shelly came into view at the head of the column. The country's grassland was slowly turning to rolling hills with shrubs and small patches of trees as we left the coast. But from here on out, the land would become increasingly rocky and the hills larger and valleys deeper.
"Lady Shelly said you were scouting ahead. See anything of interest?" Bradley asked as they reached us.
"No. More likely the closer we get to Arucci. I would think they would like advance notice of anyone approaching."
"I agree. Any plans yet?"
"No. Don't know enough yet." I grinned. Shelly grabbed my arm and walked me away from camp, with Sonya and Joanna following.
"You were right. Bradley knows you won't run off while he has me in custody."
"It's obvious Bradley doesn't agree with Higgins that Arucci will open the gates because we come from Duke Phipps. So he hopes I can get us in but doesn't trust me—I'm part savage and talented." I laughed.
The next day, Sonya and I again left well before the troops were ready. But instead of stopping where I thought Bradley would, I pushed on into the early evening. A few hours later as we crested a hill, I pointed down into the shallow ravine below us and then to the hill on the other side. Sonya nodded, and we slowly made our way back down the hill and in the direction of the expedition.
"Clever. Civilized men light fires at night for a hot meal—Indians wouldn't," she said. "The Ojaza taught you many useful things. But like Cheyo Guard training, to pass you must know how to use it."
We arrived back at Bradley's camp close to midnight. The guard nearest the picket line was half asleep and didn't notice us until I was tying Greystone to the line. He must have notified Bradley, because by the time I finished feeding my horse, he was approaching.
"Shelly and I were concerned when we didn't see you at the end of the day. Trouble?" he asked as Shelly approached with Joanna following.
"No. Scouting. There is a band of mounted soldiers camped about two hours ahead. I counted fifteen. I don't think they are aware of your detail."
"What do you suggest?"
"Capture them. They will have useful information you need." I thought it a safe gamble as they were a day's ride from Arucci and wouldn't be missed for a while. Bradley stood silently studying me then called one of the guards over.
"Wake Captain Higgins and Lieutenant Eaton and have Sergeant Rhodes quietly wake the camp. I want everyone ready to leave in fifteen minutes," he said, and the guard took off at a run. "You think there will be a Siren with them?"
"The one leading them, unless I'm wrong." I waited as Higgins and Eaton came running, their jackets only half buttoned.
"Sir?" Higgins said while saluting.
"Zara, what's the camp like?"
"Fourteen mounted troops are camped in a narrow ravine about two hours from here. They have a sentry posted on the hill north of the ravine, and I believe they have a Siren with them, probably the ranking person leading the detail. I would suggest someone take out the guard on the hill and let me deal with the Siren before you enter."
"Enter?" Higgins asked, frowning at me.
"They are just soldiers obeying orders. If that is the case and the Siren is incapacitated, they should be willing to cooperate." I saw Shelly and Eaton nodding agreement when Bradley looked at them.
"Alright, lead us to the hill overlooking their camp, and we can get in position while you confront the Siren," Bradley said, waving for Higgins and Eaton to get things moving. Shelly said nothing but gave Sonya a look that she nodded to in reply. Something else I needed to learn—women's talk. Sergeant Rhodes came running up shortly afterward.
"Lead on, Zara. I have a small detail with me. The main column will follow shortly." He grinned. "This should be fun."
"Hopefully," I said as I untied Greystone and began a slow run beside her with Sonya following next to her horse and the sergeant and his detail riding behind us. As we approached the hill, I had everyone dismount and hobble his or her horse. Then we quietly made our way to the top, where I pointed out the position of the guard. When Rhodes nodded, I slid over the top with Sonya following and began my decent toward the camp. There was only one half-awake sentry and we avoided him easily. I found a position some twenty yards from the only tent and sat. Sonya moved off to the side.
I entered the blue dimension easily and extended it toward the tent. As my sight reached the tent, it disappeared and a young man sat with snakes crawling over him and one held in his hand.
"You are not one of us. Are you here to join us and be free, or are you here to die?" He smiled, raising the snake to his lips.
"To negotiate a peaceful surrender. I believe the Abbot would accept you back."
"To do what, serve her like a slave? She rejected us and now we reject her." As the snake in his hand grew, he flung it at me. It grew as it sailed through the air. I drew my sword and as it descended I slashed through its body—it disappeared—and the snakes around him began to crawl toward me, poisonous judging by their diamond-shaped heads. They grew as they came, hissing with mouths wide and fangs dripping venom. I shuddered. I had seen an Ojaza bitten by a poisonous snake and it was a painful death. They began coiling just out of my reach. Panic kills, I mused as I sought a quiet mind. I changed to a hawk and took to flight just as the first one struck. I caught it in my talons then torn its head off with my beak. Swooping down, I dropped the remains on the young man. He gave out a blood-curling cry that woke the camp as my talons sank into his head and my beak plucked at his eyes. He went into shock and hung limp in my talons. I let go, feeling sick.
I jerked awake as four men came running for me. I staggered to my feet, hoping to stop them, but too late. Sonya had killed all four before I could say anything. Good thing, because in my state of mind they would have killed me. Bradley's troops were now coming into the ravine from all directions. Thankfully, the soldiers were making no attempt to fight and had dropped their weapons. Bradley entered the tent before walking to where Sonya and I stood.
"He's only a young boy," he said in a surprisingly neutr
al voice.
"The Trasslat Monastery takes them in when they are only children. Many are let go within the first couple of years to return to their families. The ones with potential talent are not judged until they are teenagers, so it's not surprising many of the Sirens are young," Sonya said. "That makes them no less dangerous."
"You may want to show the troops the young man before you question them. They think they have been following an older officer. It might make them more cooperative," I said, thinking the troops were just following orders, not in on some grand conspiracy. He nodded.
Over the next hour the troops were questioned and slowly a picture of the current situation at Arucci emerged. Earl Meade, his wife, and two sons had died in a coup attempt that Baron Lyons defeated. Captain Drake, the dead young man, replaced Captain Pratt, who they were told was the leader of the coup, which included the minister and several nobles. A new minister, Foster, was appointed and a new baron and baroness had joined since the coup.
"Zara, could you pretend to be the dead Siren?" Bradley asked as he, Shelly, Higgins, Rhodes, and I sat around a breakfast fire later that morning. "You obviously have talent."
"They were trained at the Trasslat Monastery. I wasn't. The talent I have is as a fighter; the other talents are a mystery to me. But with the help of the detail's sergeant, we might fake our way in.
"How?"
"If we can convince him Sirens killed the earl, we can have him ride back to the castle and say the captain is fighting a band of Indians and has ordered thirty troops to help him wipe them out. When they come, we convince them of the situation. Then we could ride with them as conquering heroes and once inside, take command of the castle."
"It’s worth a try. If the people of Arucci believe a legitimate noble is in charge, they will follow his orders. He could say we are part of the coup or we were part of those that overthrew the duke," Bradley said, looking around the group. Hearing no dissent, he continued. "Let's try it."
I suggested Lady Shelly be the one to talk to the sergeant. She spent two hours with him, talking about our journey from Calle and encounters along the way and the attempted coup at Hipula. When she was satisfied, we let the sergeant go and crossed our fingers. Personally, I believed Shelly had the sergeant on her side. Bradley wasn't taking any chances, and deployed his troops to counter any treachery, so I decided to follow well behind the sergeant to ensure I knew what was happening in advance.
The sergeant reached Arucci late in the evening and several hours later a group of thirty left the city. I followed them to make sure things looked normal—no stops or attempts to sneak up on the camp. They arrived just after sunrise. When they did, Lady Shelly rose along with Bradley to meet them. Her troops stayed seated so as not to present a threat. I joined the group as discussions were taking place. It took four hours to convince the senior troopers and to develop a plan to enter the castle and another two hours to prepare for our return.
Twenty-five of the thirty would return with the first group along with ten of Bradley's force dressed in Arucci uniforms and ten bodies—mine, Sonya’s, and eight more of Bradley's force—slung across saddles as if dead. The rest would wait two hours away for someone to get them when the castle was secure.
The entry into the city and castle went smoothly. Once inside, we all went to the barracks to change and get organized. We had barely changed when Minister Foster walked into the stables. He took one look around and turned to leave, but I stepped in front of him, blocking his way.
"I'm afraid you are under arrest, unless you'd like to try and fight your way out." I said with my dagger in my hand. "Even if you overcome me in the blue dimension, one of these troopers will cut you down, so drop the illusion and live."
He stared at me for a long time, until Sonya drew her sword. The illusion of an elderly man disappeared and a boy in his late teens stood in his place. Bradley and Higgins saw me and came walking over.
"Meet the current minister of Arucci," I said. "He as well as the others will need to be secured and guarded. I'd suggest we secure them with a lock that only the captain or his sergeant can unlock. They are capable of putting ideas into you head."
Higgins and a couple of troopers took the young man away. When everyone had changed back into their appropriate uniform, Bradley led his seventeen troopers plus an additional twenty Arucci troopers across the courtyard and into the castle, with Sonya and me following. We caught the Sirens impersonating Baron Walton and Baroness Berry coming down the stairs.
"What is the meaning of this?" the Siren Berry shouted. "Arucci soldiers, arrest these men. They are part of Duke Phipps's coup!" As she shouted this, my head began to feel cloudy. I stepped forward and slammed the flat of my sword against the Baroness and then poked the baron in his side. Both images faded and a young man and woman were revealed.
"Change back or attempt any illusions, and it will be the last time."
"Sergeant Rhodes, take these two into custody. Put the three in the dungeon and you keep the keys for safety. Any funny business, kill them," Higgins said as Bradley and over twenty troopers followed him up the stairs. Sonya and I followed. Bradley found Baron Lyons in the earl's study. He stood, frowning.
"Baron Bradley, why are you on Duke Brodka’s land with troops?"
"With permission of the council of dukes. Baron Lyons , you are under arrest for the murder of Earl Meade and his family."
"I stopped a coup by Captain Pratt. I was just waiting word from Duke Brodka."
"You will have your day in court; however, I'm afraid you will pay for the treachery whether you instigated it or were a willing coconspirator or a victim of the Sirens. Captain, place Lyons in the dungeon with the Sirens."
* * *
Shelly and the others joined us several hours later. Bradley held court with all the nobles and their wives that evening. The overthrow of the earl appeared all too easy. Everyone believed Captain Pratt and a few soldiers had attempted a coup and Baron Lyons had stopped it, albeit too late to save the earl and his family.
"That was too simple," Shelly said that evening when we were alone in her room. "An earl and his family killed and no one seemed to care."
"Because their lives weren't impacted. No one lost land or status. Dinner was still served on time," I quipped.
"That's harsh."
"Another good lesson."
"What lesson?"
"If dinner hadn't been served, there would have been a revolt. Questions asked. Someone made to pay," I said, watching Shelly's expression change from indignation to concern. Finally, she sat and became quiet.
"So long as you don't impact people's lives, no one cares who rules. That's not a good lesson."
"Only if you wish to rule."
"What's the option?"
"I'll let you know when I find it." I sat and quieted my mind. Bradley was going to expect a strategy tomorrow or the next day for Monis, and strategies weren't my strong point.
* * *
The Sirens and Baron Lyons were hung the next day. The following day, Bradley called a meeting to discuss Monis.
"Maybe we can pull off the same trick we did here," Higgins said, looking at me.
"I don't know, but I somehow think Monis is aware of what happened here at Arucci."
"How would they know?"
"A good question, but Arucci knew we were coming, based on the patrol. Fortunately for us, their captain didn't have the experience of someone like you. If he had, they would have known our position, strength, and colors and could have returned to the castle with that information. The castle had nothing to fear. There was no way you could have breached the city with so few men."
The discussions went on for hours, slowly coalescing around the idea of taking thirty troopers from Arucci, making the combined total of the expedition over a hundred.
"What do you say, Zara. No advice?" Bradley said, knowing a hundred troopers wouldn't get them into Monis.
"I think Lady Shelly, if she is willing, and I shoul
d go around the backside of the Wild Mountains, in case whoever runs the Sirens decides to escape through the Monis Pass." I looked to Shelly, who frowned in thought then nodded.
"So you can take off?" Higgins asked in an accusatory tone. Why he wanted me around was beyond my logic. He clearly didn't like me and didn't agree with my approach—meanness I guessed.
"I didn't know I was under arrest. I was sent here by Duke Wetzel to look and report my findings to Duke Phipps, which I did."
"You’re an advisor to this expedition. Duke Phipps appointed you." Bradley said as if that answered the question.
"If I wanted to leave, no one could stop me. You and I know you couldn't catch me even if I told you the time I was leaving," I said, smiling to take the sting out of it. "However, I'm quite certain that Lady Shelly would suffer the consequences, although she has no control over me. Consequently, I'm not going anywhere. You claim I'm an advisor, well then, I'm advising you that the Sirens know or will know shortly you are advancing on Monis with over a hundred troops. This gives them two options: one, to stay and fight since your odds of breaching the castle are few with the numbers you have, or two, to flee. Going west they may run into you, so east is the most logical direction. That would mean going through the Monis Pass. Of course, someone else could go if you like."
"Alright, you've made your point, Zara. You have to admit you aren't a willing participant," Bradley said in a reasonable tone.
"You have to admit, no one asked me if I'd like to volunteer or offered to pay me to be an advisor." I heard Shelly choke back a laugh.
"What are you being paid by Duke Wetzel?" Bradley asked, obviously taken aback by my response, or he saw a chance to bind me to the expedition.
"Nothing, but I volunteered." I grinned.
"I'm sure Duke Phipps will be very generous if we are successful," he said with a reassuring smile. I let the issue drop with a nod, which he took as assent. In fact, I doubted Phipps would reward anyone except for Bradley if we were successful. And if we weren't, I would get all the blame. That would be a real dilemma, because if I took off, Shelly would be left to answer for the expedition's failure.