by Katy Winter
"Not with a mage, little Crystal, no. Crystals never do."
Estbane looked across at the little dragonet, to see, for the first time, that without conscious thought she'd coloured to blue but then suddenly changed to auburn gold, her unusual violet eyes less troubled when they looked into his. He sensed a sudden easing of confusion in her mind, but knew that only time and patience would bring her to full understanding and acceptance of her destiny.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Soji came to when she felt herself pushed roughly to matting on the ground. She couldn't see anything until her eyes adjusted to the gloom and showed her she was in a small cavern somewhere in the mountains. A form loomed over her. She felt herself pushed impatiently onto her stomach so her hands could be tied very firmly behind her back, before she was hauled, even more roughly, to a sitting position against a cold wall. She was left alone, shivering, and with chattering teeth. Briefly she whimpered for Jonqi, then fell silent.
She'd no idea how long she was left there, because she had no way of telling what day or night it was. It stayed dark all the time. Her captor came back every so often with food and drink that he fed her in silence. If she attempted to speak, a hand was placed firmly over her mouth and her shoulders were shaken. She learned to be silent. After food, she was hustled to another part of the cavern where she was briefly untied, told curtly to relieve herself, the steppeman turning from her to allow her privacy. Distraught, she obeyed, her mind full of anxiety for Jonqi. Left alone again, wrists re-tied, Soji shivered and cried.
When her captor finally came without food, Soji knew she'd be moved. She was helped to her feet and pushed brusquely to the entrance, hands still tied. She stumbled when she met the light and fell to her knees, blinded. A hand jerked her to her feet.
"Don't fall again," warned a harsh, cold voice above her.
"I cannot see," she answered weakly.
"I'll guide you. Walk."
Soji's eyes streamed, but since she couldn't wipe them she simply obeyed the ungentle pressure on her shoulder and took a step forward. As she walked her vision returned and she had a clearer picture of where she was. She was on a rocky trail, but could tell they were considerably higher up the mountain than she was when these men took her. She was brought to a halt and stood still.
"Don't move," she was advised.
Soji stared at a large group of steppemen who watched her. They were unmoving and she saw no pity in their eyes. When one man stepped forward, Soji couldn't be sure if he was the man who took Jonqi from her, because they were so alike she couldn't tell them apart. The man spoke coldly.
"We decide your fate, boy claiming to be a girl," he said harshly. "Answer carefully, because what you say determines whether we execute you here, now." Soji licked her lips forlornly, but nodded, her eyes going to the wrapped bundle in the arms of one of the other steppemen. "Who are you?" The accent was different from Churchik, but Soji had no difficulty understanding the language.
"I am Soji."
"Child of?"
"Daughter of Soraya and Alleghy." Soji heard the indrawn hissing breaths and bent her head.
"Child of one of the warlord's elite warriors, are you?" The voice became a snarl. Soji shook. "Why are you here?"
"I was not sent," she managed.
"Why did you come?"
"I came to save my daughter."
"Why?"
"She was to be taken to the Keep. I could not allow that."
"You claim you're not a boy?"
Soji wondered, wretchedly, whether she'd now be subjected to the humiliation of being stripped.
"I am a girl," she whispered, thinking she no longer cared if she was to be executed. It would be preferable to any further degradation. The interrogation went on.
"Why are you dressed as a boy?"
"A girl alone would have roused suspicion. I thought it might give me a better chance of escape."
"Who do you seek to escape?"
"I wish to escape from my home."
"The Churchik?" Soji nodded and coughed. "Such as him?"
Soji stared to where the steppeman pointed and there she saw a warrior propped against the rock face to her left. She could see he was manacled to the rock, unmoving. Soji nodded.
"Who is he?" Soji wet her lips.
"I cannot tell from here."
The steppeman pushed her over to the warrior who lifted his head at her approach. She met the cold eyes of Them. She stared down to see he was stripped and bruised in a way that made Soji swallow hastily, because she knew, without being told, the steppemen had worked on him so completely this warrior was broken in all but pride. Them looked up at her grimly.
"See what you have done, girl?" he asked huskily, through dry, bloodied lips. Soji stood still, numb. She turned to the steppeman.
"What are you going to do to him?" she asked in a shaken voice. He ignored her and instead stared down at the warrior.
"We'll talk, warrior. You'll answer, again, whatever we ask of you." Them made no move. "Is this boy a girl?" Them nodded. "You say she's the child of Alleghy. Is that so?" Again, Them nodded. "Are you father to the baby?" An unexpected glint came to the usually humourless blue eyes.
"No, I am not."
"Why have you come after them, if you're not the father?"
"I serve her father. Soji was being taken to her uncle's when she escaped with the child. She killed a warrior."
"So?"
"She must die for that. I would execute her myself." The steppeman saw Soji's flinch when the warrior's pale eyes met hers. "Oh yes, little girl, make no mistake about that," Them whispered softly. "I would have done so immediately." He gave a cough that obviously hurt.
"Why was she being taken to her uncle?" Them kept silent. The voice went on, relentlessly cold. "I can speak to the girl for information but I want to hear it from you, warrior. Answer me!" When Them didn't speak, the steppeman stooped and put pressure on the warrior's throat. "You won't die just yet, warrior." Them coughed, gasped, and his voice was a hoarse whisper. Soji could tell he suffered considerable pain.
"The child is to be taken to the Keep. Soji has no right to still have the child."
"She is mine, Them. She is my daughter."
"Look where she has got you, girl. She is a curse."
"Who else has a right to her?" asked Soji.
"Presumably," whispered Them, "her father and the sorcerer."
"Who, warrior, is the child's father?" Again Them was silent. "You'll answer, warrior." The steppeman stooped for a second time. When he straightened, a strangled cry broke from Them and Soji saw that his eyes watered and he breathed very fast.
"The sorcerer's apprentice."
There was the intake of hissing breaths around them and then a long silence before the steppeman spoke again.
"Tell me, again, warrior, what happened."
Them was lathered with sweat even though the mountain air was keen and Soji could see how he laboured for breath. She'd seen agony in the eyes of dying men unlucky enough to fall into her father's hands. She saw it in Them now.
"I know little," he gasped, his lips turning blue. "I know Soji met the apprentice at Chika and -." He stopped on a choke and his eyes closed. His chest heaved.
The steppeman stooped for a third time and when he straightened, Soji could see he wiped a knife. She didn't need to look down to know Them was dead. She reflected, in panic, that his death was a quicker and cleaner one than she'd have received at his hands and expected the wiped knife would now be used on her. The steppeman came close to her.
"Now you," he said coldly, lifting her head. "What's the apprentice's name?"
"Luton."
"Why did you have his child?" Soji stood numbly, dimly aware she was shaken very hard and that a knife rested against her throat.
"Kill me," she murmured. "I do not wish to go on anymore."
"Answer me, child!" The knife at her throat moved infinitesimally.
"Luton's master sent him
south to Chika, to choose a mate."
"Why you?"
"I do not know."
"How old are you?"
"Not yet seventeen cycles."
"Go on!"
"Luton kept me captive until I became -." Soji's voice broke and became suspended with tears. She sank to the ground with an inarticulate gasp. She crouched. Having to speak of her ordeal brought it all back with horrifying clarity. She was aware someone crouched by her and felt her chin lifted, even as her bonds were cut. The knife was gone.
"The child doesn't resemble you." Soji shook her head. "She favours the father?" She nodded and was eased to her feet. When she looked up at the steppemen, she saw a hint of pity in his eyes but he didn't smile. "And then?"
"After Luton, Haskar Kher took me back to my father. We were told Jonqi was to go to the Keep within five seasons."
"Who is Haskar Kher?"
"Luton travels with him."
"Why wait now to escape?"
"I was in Dahkilah. Where could I have gone?"
"So you came to us?" Soji shook her head.
"I came to the mountains," she whispered. "They called me."
"What do you mean they called you?"
"I often saw them and a woman within them."
"What does she look like?"
"She is older, tall, with long white hair and gray eyes that comfort me and she has her hands out in welcome."
At a signal, the other steppemen came forward and the one holding Jonqi handed the child to Soji. Jonqi smiled contentedly up at her, her thumb in her mouth.
"You'd best stay as a boy. We travel hard." The steppeman gave Soji a push. "We have your horse ready. Come, girl."
~~~
The ride wasn't easy because the trail became slippery and treacherous. Luton could've warned Soji about mountain conditions. If Soji slowed because she was unsure of the horse's footing, she found a steppeman drew in behind her to keep her horse to the pace. There was no menace in the action, but it made Soji nervous.
Their stops were brief. Soji was left to kneel in a cavern off the trail while she attended to Jonqi. The steppemen kept their distance and watched, though Soji saw no hostility in their gaze, merely curiosity or indifference. Soji ate very little, because she had no appetite and was unable to stop shivering. After two days of hard riding and bone-chilling cold, Soji found herself at the top of this particular pass, but the steppemen didn't stop to admire the view, Soji moved on again with an impatient shove.
She found the downward trek trickier than the climb up. Her horse slithered, and, like the others, she often had to clamber down and lead her mount, conscious how high up they were. By the end of the following day she shook with fatigue and on-creeping illness, burned hot and feverishly yet at the same time shivered, and her vision frequently blurred. She stumbled, only to get a peremptory push from whoever was behind her and she shivered incessantly, her fingers numb when she cared for Jonqi. Her feet felt like lead. In the evenings she huddled miserably in cloaks, barely able to eat.
Two days later the plains sprawled out below them, only a short distance away. It took a sheer effort of will for Soji to sit straight in the saddle, her eyes staring blankly ahead and her horse obligingly keeping in step with the other riders. What Soji did notice was huge tracts of land, harshly burned in the past, came back to life. The sun warmed her but her teeth chattered and her head ached. When she glanced down at Jonqi, soundly asleep with her little fist in her mouth, a sad smile curled Soji's lips and she swayed as she rode. She was very pale and very thin. She hadn't eaten for two days because food made her nauseous. She looked like an under-nourished Churchik boy or a slave. Those with her noticed but kept the pace fast.
Once the plains were reached, the pace accelerated again. Soji clenched her teeth and forced her mount to keep up with the steppemen, even though she knew it was hard on the animal because it lacked the speed and stamina of the steppe horses. They only stopped once this day, so that Jonqi and the horses could be cared for and her mount was given extra water and feed.
It was early evening before they stopped again. Through a haze of pain and cold, Soji thought she could see they'd reached some sort of temporary settlement where there were literally dozens of hide tents that stretched around and out from a huge central area. When the steppemen approached, at full gallop, tall slender boys ran out to them, hands out to take reins. They paused at Soji's horse, then as one drew back.
One of her rescuers said sharply, "Get down. I'll take the child." Soji slipped trembling to the ground that seemed to come up and meet her. She could scarcely stand. "Remain where you are," barked the voice.
Too ill and weary to protest, Soji clung to the saddle for support until a hand grasped her arm and yanked her forward. She followed, her head spinning uncomfortably. She tried to keep up with whoever held her, until she found herself unceremoniously thrust into the centre of the camp where a huge fire burned. Soji couldn't see anyone in particular. She just stood still, head bowed, her breathing very rapid and shallow. A quiet voice beside her spoke calmly.
"Sit by the fire, lad. You're cold."
Soji sank to the ground where she was. She felt her face turned and tried to look wearily, but with unfocused eyes, into the face of the man who touched her.
"Get Sagi quickly," said the quiet voice again. "And bring me cloaks and a cup of meras. Child, I think you're very ill. Can't you get warm?"
Soji shook her head. Her breathing became more stressed and laboured. She wheezed in considerable distress. A shudder shook her. The steppeman looked deeply into her eyes, his gray ones as tranquil as an untroubled sea, then, when he let her go, her head drooped. She knew he drew cloaks about her and placed a cup in her hands.
"Drink, lad," the voice said again. "It'll help to warm you." She tipped the cup, choking a little because the liquid had a pungent odour. "Drink it," she was told again.
She swallowed obediently. The cup fell from her hands as the man gathered her in strong arms and held her as though she weighed nothing. Her lungs heaved. Her head fell back on the man's chest.
Soji felt cool hands run across her head and face, while other hands sponged her and then made her swallow liquid that was persistently dripped into her mouth. She fought any effort to disrobe her. She heard a chuckle above her when the quiet deep voice she'd heard at the fire spoke.
"Now why would a lad fight to be clothed, do you think? Is it because of you, Sagi? Churchik modesty?" A deep feminine chuckle greeted that as two pairs of hands stripped Soji, even though the girl clutched at the breeches.
"Not a lad at all," came the male voice in mild surprise. "A girl child and a not very old one at that. Well, well!"
"Young or not," said the female voice, "she's given birth very early, especially for a Churchik who are, usually, at least seventeen cycles before marri."
"Interesting, Sagi, isn't it? What do you wish me to do for the child?"
"Keep her quiet while I sponge her. We must try to reduce the fever."
While the talk went on around her, Soji sensed hands work gently and swiftly. Delirium made her fuzzy surroundings spin in slow motion.
"What ails the child?" came the quiet voice. "There's profound fear here."
"Quietly, child," murmured the woman. "No one will hurt you."
"He did," moaned Soji. "He must not do the same to Jonqi."
Her body curled away from those near her. The man very gently pulled her onto her back, his free hand stroking a hot cheek.
"Hush, child," he whispered. "We won't hurt you and no one will harm Jonqi."
"Do not touch me," whispered Soji, her hands clutching at his and gripping so strongly the man stayed still beside her.
"You won't be hurt, child," he said soothingly.
Soji was clad in a long, soft robe that wrapped her in warmth, before she was carefully lifted up on cushions so her breathing eased. Drifting asleep, she felt covers tucked about her and sighed.
Sagi stood beside the m
attress, her gray eyes deeply concerned. The man, still crouched on the ground, looked up at the troubled face.
"Is this the girl of your seeing, Sagi?"
"Yes," said Sagi absently. "I didn't recognise her at first and not just because she came as a boy. She's altered much from my last seeing of her two cycles ago."
"You wouldn't expect her to come as a lad any more than I did. That she has, suggests she's been forced to flee - I wonder why. I'm also concerned this child's badly hurt." The man paused, his glance up at Sagi pensive before he went on, "And the child that was brought straight to you?"
"She's as I saw. She's exactly as expected."
"It seems we came in response to your last seeing barely in time. Another day and this child may not have survived."
"She's seriously ill. You need to send for Setoni."
"I already have," responded the man imperturbably. "When we came south, I sent for him. He should be here shortly."
"I'll care for the girl until he comes, but I'm not a trained healer. It would be wise to keep the child from the mother until we see signs of recovery."
"As you wish, Sagi." The man rose. He left the obtusa noiselessly, leaving Sagi staring down at the still form and the paper-white, thin face.
~~~
Soji woke feeling serene and warmly comfortable, the fever that tormented her gone and the obtusa she was in no longer rose and fell. She coughed, then turned her head. Her eyes settled on an older man she judged was a southerner. When her vision cleared properly she saw he wasn't a tall man, but slight and with pale translucent eyes. Soji knew she looked on a healer.
Though he had his head averted when she first opened her eyes, the man knew she was awake and he came quietly to crouch beside her. Calmly he took her hand in his, his expression gentle. She was unafraid.
"I'm relieved to see you awake, girl," he said in a well-modulated voice, his eyes looking deeply into hers. "And the delirium's gone, hasn't it?"
"Yes," whispered Soji. "I am warm, I thank you."
"You've been very ill, child, and must rest for a little while yet. You must've caught a chill in the mountains."
"How long have I been ill?"
"You've been feverish for two days, child. Sagi cared for you until I could reach you a night ago. I've cared for you since. Can you tell me your name?"
"I am Soji, daughter of Soraya and Alleghy."
"And you're Churchik?"