The two girls scurried off to find what they had been told to find. They are definitely standing straighter and are now moving with confidence. It seems that getting weapons and real clothes were a good set of first orders to give…for the rest we will see.
Perhaps I can make some good come out of the latest change in their lives.
~~~
Stefan
Stefan was posted to the wall to keep a watch on the sky and the entrance to the valley. His eyes swept around, not failing to check where they had descended. If we can do it, so can others. From where I stand I can see all that is happening below…although I try to avoid looking…there…but I cannot avoid hearing it. They are mocking Dharmal at this stage. Someone has carefully cut his stomach open, so carefully that there was little blood spilt and, to his horror, Dharmal’s guts are spilled to the ground and spread out before him to contemplate as they pulse before him. They must have fed him a curative potion to keep him alive after doing that as his stomach is healed back around where his innards emerged. In Evilhalt, if such a man as the Dwarf had been caught the punishment would have been ruthless…hung in a gibbet to be mocked and to have things thrown at him until he eventually starved and died and with his body left there to rot as an example to others. It would be a harsh and condign punishment, but not quite this brutal and bloody. Everyone is scurrying around—Bianca and Thord should be back soon. The mages have disappeared…I hope to make magical preparations.
~~~
My stomach is grumbling…and plates and food are appearing down below. It would be nice if someone remembers and feeds me. Even the women who are at work on Dharmal are now taking breaks to grab something to eat, although some have to be reminded to wash their hands. I don’t want to leave my post, or even call out to give an order. That may be too harsh for the women under the circumstances.
But wait…there is a girl coming up the stairs with a tray. It is hard not to notice her. She has red hair. It is the fiery colour of autumn leaves and she has outer clothes that are green with a tight embroidered brown leather bodice worn over them. From where I stand it is obvious that the bandits liked their women attractive and the dresses they made them wear to be revealing. It is a nice view. She looked up and caught his gaze. Stefan blushed. Damn, I am as bad as the bandits.
The girl smiled at him. “That is all right.” She spoke in Hindi. It is not her native tongue. “I am used to men looking at me. I even used to wear dresses like this when I was at home. When I was much younger…a few months ago…I once used to think that I was blessed with my looks. Then it looked like I was cursed. Now, for the future, we have to see.” She sat with Stefan while he ate…”To take the tray back down,” she said.
He was told her story. She was Bryony verch Dafydd, the most recent of the girls to arrive, having only been here three months. She was a hunter from the Swamp, from the village of Rising Mud. I shouldn’t smile at that. He failed. “We are used to that reaction, but it is the name we like. It amuses us as well. Our village is built on islands in a river and we control the only real crossing. The problem is that the islands are only made of mud, so we are always fighting the mud and the river to keep our homes. If you forget and sit back, the mud rises.” She shrugged and went on to explain that she had been at her wedding party at her family’s farm outside the village when there had been a raid by bandits. They killed several of the people there and had decided to take her. Her new husband was in the way and so he was casually slain. “Once I was here I got lucky, I got adopted by one of the women—not Ekaterina, the one with the whips—but Miriam, the ugly one.” She pointed down at the bodies, specifically at the sleeping guard Ayesha had killed. “As long as I gave her the release she sought, she was quite kind to me, like you would be kind to a pet rabbit. I am not sure that she knew that I was really human. To her I was just some sort of pet that gave her enough pleasure to wear her out and let her sleep at night. She had bad dreams. I know that. She would pat me and comb my hair and I gave her the little death. At any rate, I was widowed on my wedding night and, apart from a few times when they took me on the way north, it has not been as bad for me as for others—but I have nothing to go back to. They told me on the way north that they were there to kill my family and I am the last one alive. If I went back there now then all I would have are memories…very bad ones… Now tell me about yourself.”
So Stefan found himself standing on a wall feeling the sun warm him and, as they both kept a look out, telling each other about their lives. We have both had lives that were reasonably uneventful, and so fairly free of pain, until recently. The tray sat empty and forgotten. Gradually the bodies were removed to outside the wall and put in a shallow grave. The place below started looking like a normal village except for the cluster around Dharmal.
Two women walked through the village dressed as Khitan with bows and other weapons at their waists. Were they from among the slaves? Bryony is looking hard at the two as well. Eventually Thord and Bianca came into view. Bianca’s horse is moving fast, with her other two running free beside her. Her big packhorse, laden lightly, is keeping up with the war horses, stride for stride, making the other horses, tied behind it, run as well. Something is up.
“Someone get Rani,” he called. “T’ey be a comin’ back with t’ horses ’n’ seem to be in hurry.” To Bryony he said, “Better be gettin’ below. We could be a havin’ trouble.”
She nodded and gathered the tray and hurried down. As she ran to the kitchen while holding her skirt up high and showing near the full length of her legs, that they were…good legs too…
Chapter X
Theodora
Theodora started to take stock of this hidden place for magic and defence. The roof, where Astrid killed the mage, has a pentagram painted on it, but it will have to be completely re-worked before being usable. Blood lies all over the design and crosses several lines. The design is not just broken…it is ruined. The blood makes sure that the pattern would more likely serve to kill whoever uses it rather than helping them, if it is worked with now. She was thinking what to do when her lover joined her.
“This is important,” said Theodora, as she waved her hands around the valley. “From here you can see a long way. It is the best place to defend an airborne attack. We have lots of areas like this at home. I will get someone to clean this mess up and then I will re-craft the pattern. There must be paint here somewhere–one of the girls will know.”
She left Rani on the rooftop to inspect what she had seen, and to find an assistant. I was just about to just grab this passing girl—just as I would a servant in the Palace at home—but I realise I am not supposed to be a Princess here. Father Christopher has said to ask him for matters such as this. She went down to where the priest was and explained what she wanted.
Christopher nodded and headed back into the house. “Sajãh,” he called out.
A head appeared near the top of the stairs.
“Is there anyone who would know where the paint for the design on the roof would be and who can clean it up? We may need it fast.”
The woman, Sajãh, sized up the situation and thought for a moment and grabbed the smallest nearby child. She is a tiny blonde girl who looks a bit like a baby Astrid without the teeth. “Go to the Princess down there and do what she tells you. You can be her servant now.”
The girl’s eyes grew wide and she scrambled down the stairs. All of the children wear only short skirts—long tunics really. She looks quite funny as she lands at the foot of the stairs and bobs what is obviously meant to be some sort of curtsey, perhaps something remembered from when she used to have a home. So much for not being seen as a Princess. What had Ayesha meant by saying that? How did she know? Of course…she must have met Miriam. I need to have a long talk with that girl. She was not what she had pretended to be. Rani seemed to know…something about the supposed slave girl…I should have asked my lover. She felt warm inside as she thought the last bit. I am getting to like that word.
&nb
sp; The girl said she was Fear the Lord Your God Thatcher. “What do I call you?” asked Theodora.
“Fear, if it pleases Your Highness. If it does not please you, you can call me what you please.” The girl dropped her eyes and bobbed again. She looks to be torn between apprehension and wonder.
Theodora took her hand and heard her story as they headed off to clean and repair the roof. As she listened, she sometimes shook her head in disbelief. Like that girl that Ayesha had found…Verily…she had been sold to slavers by her family from the Brotherhood and ended up here. How could anyone do that? Slaves are captives or sometimes criminals or even people who sold themselves to pay debts. You don’t sell your children…particularly not to this sort of scum. Now she has experiences that she will never forget, or maybe…her mind drifted a bit…maybe she could…Theodora shook her head…this will be for later, but perhaps she can find a way to take away the memories and give the girl a childhood back.
~~~
Father Christopher
Christopher looked around. Everyone has been fed. The house is being cleaned. Dharmal still has his cloud of attendants, although some have moved away and others have joined in. There is even a large pile of weapons growing on the veranda under Basil’s watchful gaze. A smaller pile has weapons and other items that are being added to it every time that Robin appears. Weapons are also going from the other pile. Two beautiful women dressed as Khitan, their clothes obviously having come from much larger men, came and helped themselves to bows and some other items.
As they are testing the draw of the bows and flexing arrows they see him looking at them.
“We belong to Hulagu. He told us to arm ourselves,” said one, and turned back to her task.
She obviously thought that this was a complete explanation. Belong to Hulagu? Had he hidden them in a saddlebag? We came to free these people hadn’t we? If they belonged to him, why are they arming themselves so happily? He shook his head. Tonight I can see that there will be a lot of explaining to do…after I have done a service for those who want it and I have the Feast Day of St John the Baptist to celebrate as well. I saw Ayesha do the same for her people, but her times are more set. I thought that women couldn’t lead prayer in her culture. At any rate it will be important for some of them that I do the same and I will certainly have a lot of confessions to see to. It seems that I have the flock that the Abbot said I would find. I am also finding out about the world. I would have been happier to have stayed in the monastery in ignorance of the very real evil that stalks the world. I have stopped being a monk. Must I become not just a priest, but one of the Basilica Anthropoi, the Holy warriors of God? Who would have thought? I might have to learn how to use a real weapon…at least I can be sure that someone here will be more than happy to teach me how to do that.
~~~
Rani
Rani looked up the valley and thought about what she had to do. There are several distinct problems. First there are the expected arrivals from the south. That should be the easiest to deal with. If they are as careless as the others had been and if they do not arrive too soon they should be easy to wrap up. She mapped out some ideas as alternatives. The exact details will depend on how much the people of the valley want to help us and, indeed, whether they can help.
The second issue was that of Ahmed and the carpet. That is a bigger problem than a mere gaggle of armsmen. I will need a spell to take him out. She thought for a bit. Not one of my spells or even one I can manipulate is guaranteed to take out a person on a carpet in one quick strike—particularly since he would most likely have some form of protection…and not just the normal resistance that mages develop as they grew familiar with their craft. Perhaps my Princess will have something useful. She still didn’t know exactly how powerful her lover was, although Rani suspected that she was far more advanced than herself. Luckily the entire battle in the village was carried out with stored magic and we are both fresh and full of mana. That diagram on the roof is becoming more and more important. Between us we should be able to boost a control spell of some sort with enough power to take out any protection that Ahmed might have. Mind you, we will only have one cast to do it in and we will be useless afterwards if anything else happens. I will need to see more about getting the pentagram repaired. There is no other choice.
Thirdly, there were these Masters. In the long run they are going to be the biggest issue. What are they? How will we defeat them? We are most likely only going to have one chance to do so and, if we go in without the right preparation, then we will all die. Many others have probably done so in the past. That is obvious and it is likely the Masters grow stronger each time they win. It looks more and more as if we are going to need to sit and prepare for some time. If we wait here, the Masters can unleash something else at us—a dragon perhaps, maybe one of the wild tribes or something else…anything really. They seem to like using undead and since The Burning there are a lot of unquiet bodies lying around waiting to be used. That would be the most likely for them. I wonder why more people don’t follow the practices of my people. Burning bodies is so much more sensible. Nothing could easily come back from being made into scattered dust and ash.
On the other hand, if we go somewhere else, we would not have the advantage of such a good position. Despite the ease with which we entered and won, if this position is properly held, it would be almost unassailable to anyone who did not come from the sky. It would be hard to find such advantages elsewhere and, what is more, if we do go and leave these women here then it is likely they will either die or become someone’s slave all over again. We must block the way that we entered and start to look at the hills behind the valley. What if there are other secret paths up there?
I am being called…Bianca is coming back. Something is happening. Well, I guess we will find out about these southern arrivals soon.
~~~
Bianca
Bianca rode towards the wall. Ahead, before the wall—that is a small patch of fresh turned earth with a pile of dirt on top. Three men are walking away with tools. That is where the bodies are already buried.
She arrived at the open gate, most of the horses trailing behind Sluggard, and with Thord and his sheep struggling vainly to keep up at the rear. Stefan stands above me on the wall, bow in hand and with a spear leaning against the gate post. Inside is…some sort of ordered confusion. The place is almost tidy, almost like a real village, except for the lack of men and the beauty of most of the women. Here I am the ugly one—the only ugly one. Before I left Freehold I was just plain, no plainer than others, but unremarkable. Here I really do stand out as if I am ugly. The women I arrived with and, even more so, the ones from the village, are all spectacular. Tall and dusky Rani is swaying down from the mage’s house. Father Christopher stands on the veranda with Basil sitting near him. Hulagu and two Khitan women are coming out of what must be the stables. They have horses with them. Two women? Where did he find them? That is right. I saw some almond-shaped eyes among the women. Here it is. I thought that he is not interested in such things. I must be so plain. He hasn’t made a single move towards her. Mind you I am not sure how I would have reacted if he had. I don’t think of him like that. It did not cross her mind that he might think of her the same way.
“They are coming from the south,” she called. “Astrid wants to eat them all herself, but I think that she might need help.”
~~~
Rani
Rani came down the stairs. I think my plan will work. Hulagu has two Khitan women in tow. He already has them armed and with horses. A woman is hurrying towards the veranda, obviously to get a weapon. I have seen that red hair before, but she is wearing a large green skirt. She still has the same top almost on, but now runs freely in trousers she has found somewhere. I doubt they are hers. A woman that looked that beautiful would not, by choice, wear clothes that fit so badly that the hem of the legs is just quickly rolled up over her boots…and the footwear are not hers either. Others, still in their skirts, are starti
ng to head for the pile. Even Dharmal has reduced his cries to a whimper. He has been deserted by his attendants. Everyone seems to be staring at me. Well, this is my job. This is my training. However I am used to doing it with the disciplined troops of Haven, not a conglomerate mob drawn from every part of The Land.
“Stefan…go to Astrid. You and she are to let them in and then come down from the lookout. You will provide a stop to prevent their escape. Use your spears. Just stay in place and, if you force them there, do not advance past the gate until I tell you. They will not be able to easily turn around on the path and will have to stay ahead of you. Horses will not easily face spears on a narrow path with no build up from a charge behind them.”
Stefan nodded and headed off. “I am going with him.” It is the red headed girl in the trousers. She has a long spear in her hand already and has just stood up. It is obvious that she is seeking something else. “I am a hunter. I can use a spear.” Great, now we have some sort of southern Astrid as well. She had another look at the girl. I know where that pale skin and red hair freckles come from. The girl is obviously one of the unclean cattle-killers of the Swamp. One advantage of that…at least she will be used to making sneak attacks from the rear and three would be more useful than two.
“Very well, but obey Astrid when you get there.” The girl nodded and, making a final rummage, grabbed a large pouch and strapped it on before joining Stefan, who appeared to already know her. First Theodora and I, then Basil and Astrid, now it looks like Hulagu has two women and lastly Stefan has found company. Is this really a military expedition following urgent omens or is it a mage’s picnic and marriage agency?
Engaging Evil (Warriors of Vhast Book 2) Page 13