"Will you walk quietly?"
"I am!"
"You're making enough noise to wake the dead in Arlin!"
She put her hands on her hips. "What do you want me to do, float above the ground?"
"That would help. Why don't you wait here? I won't be long."
"No."
"Then be quiet!"
Tassin pulled a face, and when he started forward again, it sounded like she was making more noise than before. A herd of elephants could have made less of a racket. The points of light on the scanners scattered, moved towards them and spread out. Sabre groaned and halted.
"What is it?" Tassin whispered.
"They heard you."
"Oh. Well, then we will meet them soon."
"Whether we want to or not," he grumbled.
"Now who is being pessimistic?"
Sabre swung around, his brows knotting. "I'm not being bloody pessimistic, I'm being cautious! I'd rather know who I'm going to be dealing with, and whether I want to be dealing with them, before I reveal my presence. Fools rush in without knowing what they're getting themselves into."
"So now you are calling me a fool?"
"You're too pig-headed to see it, aren't you? You just can't admit that you're wrong!"
Tassin folded her arms. "Maybe I am not."
"How do you figure that, since we don't know..." he trailed off as seven painted women emerged from the trees, surrounding them. He had been too distracted by the argument to check the scanners, and the cyber's warning light had started flashing the moment the strangers had come into range. Sabre studied the newcomers, who intrigued and puzzled him.
They were two metres tall or more, and carried spears that were aimed mainly at his belly, except for those that were pointed at his kidneys. None, he noted, were aimed at Tassin. Leather halter tops and short skirts clad their lithe, muscular bodies, revealing long, tanned legs. Strings of beads adorned their necks and entwined their flaxen hair, which hung down their backs in thick braids. Multi-coloured stripes decorated their hostile faces.
Sabre held out his empty hands in an appeasing gesture, and one woman stepped forward to relieve him of his knife and sword, which she examined. Tassin appeared dumbstruck by the strange females, and stared at them with wide eyes. The woman, who topped Sabre by four centimetres, eyed him as she tested his weapon's keen edge. She stepped in front of Tassin, who drew herself up, and the two looked each other up and down. The woman fingered the tattered pink dress, then touched the Queen's hair, but made no effort to remove the dagger tucked into Tassin's belt.
"Who are you, wandering alone in the jungle?" she enquired without malice.
The woman used the same language as Tassin, although so heavily accented that Sabre wondered if the Queen would understand it. As was common on civilised planets, the entire population spoke a single tongue, although regional dialects were typical and population groups often had their own language. On Omega Five, the dialect for this region had clearly corrupted the original language, which was Engron, a common tongue on many planets. He glanced at Tassin, wondering if he would have to translate for her.
She frowned, but replied, "I am Queen Tassin Alrade of Arlin. I come from the land on the other side of the Badlands." Tassin exuded a haughty air, despite her bedraggled appearance.
The woman looked a little puzzled by Tassin's foreign accent, but smiled. "A queen, eh? You must come and meet ours; she will want to greet you."
Although phrased politely, Sabre knew it was not an invitation, and he had a nasty suspicion that these women belonged to a man-hating culture known on old Earth as Amazons. The leader stepped in front of him again, and her lip curled as if he stank like a week-old corpse.
"And this? Why are you accompanied by a man?"
Tassin looked confused, glancing at Sabre. "He's my ... servant. He takes care of my needs."
Sabre was glad she seemed to have grasped the situation, although what she had said was basically true; she had evidently sensed the woman's hostility towards him.
The big woman sneered. "A slave."
The Amazon stood so close to him that he could smell her musky odour, and her eyes roamed over him, lingering on the brow band. She raised a hand to finger and tug at it. "What's this? An ornament on a slave?"
Tassin shook her head. "No, it... subdues him."
"Ah." The Amazon raised her brows and tilted her head. "Science."
"Yes, that's it. Science."
"It makes him... amenable?"
"Yes." Tassin shot a worried look at Sabre.
The woman walked around Sabre, studying him. She squeezed his biceps, prodded him in the stomach and pinched the skin of his flank.
"He looks strong, but a little small and thin."
Sabre wondered if she was sizing him up for the cooking pot. The spears did not waver from their target, and he thought it prudent to keep quiet. The Amazon was supremely confident; it did not seem to occur to her that he might be dangerous, and she examined him with obvious interest.
She traced the scars that ran down his arms. "Is he a fighter? It looks like he's been tortured."
"Yes."
The Amazon shot her a hard look. "But you control him completely?"
"Yes, absolutely."
The blonde nodded, apparently satisfied. "Then he can come. We are Andarons, and our village is not far away. I'm Shizana, these are my huntresses." Shizana rattled off six names, none of which Sabre could remember later. Turning away, she led them through the forest, and Sabre stayed close behind Tassin, aware of a sharp spear point mere millimetres from his back. The Andarons found a faint path and followed it, moving at a fast jog that soon had Tassin panting, although she kept up.
A short while later, the cyber's scanners detected a multitude of people ahead, which he assumed was the Andaron village. They entered a clearing occupied by a sprawl of thatched huts with walls made from dried mud, a patch of cultivation next to each one. Three trees had been felled to allow enough light in for a paddock, where a few goats grazed. A stream meandered through the village, and paths led from hut to hut, joining together, like capillaries into an artery, to form a road. It ran up the approximate middle of the village, and ended in a well-worn square before a fair-sized house.
Shizana led them towards the mansion, which was undoubtedly the Queen's dwelling. Women looked up from digging in their vegetable gardens, washing clothes, cooking over open fires, or cleaning skins for drying. Sabre was impressed by the industry. Children played games in the dirt, and the women were uniformly large, muscular and blonde, although some of the older ones were running to fat. A few wrinkled, white-haired crones squatted before their huts, smoked pipes and instructed groups of youngsters in various skills.
Although there were plenty of pubescent girls, no boys older than about twelve were in evidence, and he wondered what had happened to them. Strangely, the boys were black-haired and dark-eyed. Each hut had a rack of spears at the doorway. By the time they reached the Queen's house, a procession of children followed them, staring at Sabre. Grisly trophies decorated the mansion, mostly animal skulls and bright feathers, but several human skulls grinned from the posts outside. Shizana stopped and turned to Tassin.
"He must wait here."
Tassin nodded and relayed the order to Sabre, then vanished inside with Shizana, leaving him at the mercy of a gathering crowd of Andaron women. Most shot him hostile looks, and a few queried his guards, clearly outraged by his presence in their village. Several spat in his direction and stalked away. Some young girls stared at him with open curiosity, their eyes filled with wonder. From their fascination, he gathered that they had never seen a full grown man before. They giggled, whispered and pointed, pinching and poking each other as they blushed and squirmed.
The guards swatted the girls' backsides with their spear butts, sending them squealing, but they ignored the boys who gathered. Other idle warrior women joined the mob, leant on their spears and chatted to the guards. They treate
d Sabre as if he was no more important than a dog or goat, and about as intelligent. Most of the boys, after studying him for a while, grew bored and wandered off, but a few settled down to wait for something interesting to happen.
Tassin was ushered through painted leather curtains into a room where the primitive queen held court. A fire roared in a central grate, the smoke funnelled out through the apex of the high, thatched roof. Two bead-hung windows added to the illumination provided by the fire and a few torches. Several older women reclined on soft pelts spread over benches next to the walls, smoking pipes, nibbling food or sipping drinks. Tassin halted in the middle of the room as the women's chatter ceased, aware of the intent stares of many sets of blue eyes.
A fat woman sprawled on a fur-draped throne, dressed in soft white leather and adorned with strings of beads, teeth and feathers. Her greying hair was plaited and coiled around her head to form a crude crown, and carved bracelets clattered on her wrists when she moved. She had a strong, large-featured face, and might have been called handsome in her youth, but not beautiful.
Shizana stopped before her and bowed, indicating Tassin. "This woman claims to be Queen Tassin, from across the Badlands."
Tassin shot her an angry look. "I am Queen Tassin."
The matriarch studied Tassin with hard eyes, then smiled. "You speak strangely, so you must come from afar. You sound like a queen, but all women are queens, so welcome to my village, Tassin. I'm Molla."
Tassin nodded, as was polite between peers, though she hardly considered this barbarian queen her equal. If Sabre thought her primitive, these women were savages by comparison. Nevertheless, they seemed friendly. A woman gave her a cup of sweet beverage and showed her to a seat on a bench. Another offered her a selection of strange food, which smelt appetising, and she filled the bowl she had been given.
Molla invited her to tell her story, and Tassin omitted nothing. More lamps were lighted as it grew dark outside, and an apparently endless supply of food circulated amongst the women. The sweet drink flowed, although she found, to her relief, that it was not alcoholic. When the story ended, the barbarian queen studied her, looking intrigued.
"Why did this man carry you out of the Death Zone?"
"He's my servant."
"And he didn't violate you while you were helpless?"
"Of course not!" Tassin cheeks warmed with embarrassment.
The women murmured, and Molla gestured for quiet. "He would fight to defend you?"
"Yes." Tassin wondered where this was leading.
"Because of this thing on his head."
"Yes, partly."
"Why else?"
"He's loyal." Tassin frowned, uncertain if that was true, since she had no idea of Sabre's real motives. The cyber was loyal, and Sabre had made a bargain with it, so it was close to the truth. Would he have come after her, had it not been for that?
"Do you know how to make this thing on his head?" Molla enquired.
"No." Tassin suppressed a smile, understanding.
Molla looked disappointed, her vision of cyber-controlled slaves clearly shattered. "Who made it?"
"Other men in a faraway place."
"Other men? Why would they want to enslave their own?"
Tassin shrugged. "For the same reason as you."
Molla nodded sagely. "You may keep your pet man, but he's not allowed in any house, nor may he eat with women. He must not attempt to speak to us, and he must obey anything he's told. If he lays a hand on a woman, he will die."
"I will order him so."
The women murmured, and Molla gazed at Tassin with a pensive air. The woman beside her offered Tassin a pipe, which she declined as graciously as she could. The air was thick with pungent smoke, and her eyes watered. She sipped her drink as the pipe was passed across her to the next woman, continuing its rounds.
When the talking died away, Molla remarked, "Never have we heard of anyone crossing the Death Zone before. It's an auspicious deed. Monsters come from there and terrorise our village sometimes. They're terrible creatures, and hard to kill.
"That you survived in the Death Zone itself, where these creatures dwell, is extraordinary. We sent warriors to try to cross the desert, but only a few returned to tell of the horror that exists there. Those who did return died shortly afterwards. You're welcome amongst us, for you must be a great warrior."
"Sabre got me across," Tassin admitted, pulling a face. "He's a far greater warrior than I."
Molla shook her head, looking puzzled. "I don't understand why he helps you, since you give him nothing in return. Even with this thing on his head... it must work very well. Yet you say in your land you ruled men and women."
"That is right."
"I would like to hear more about this. Tomorrow, perhaps. A house has been prepared for you. It's late, and you must be tired."
Tassin rose and nodded to Molla as Shizana stepped forward to guide her. Outside, Sabre stood where she had left him, and she realised that he had been waiting there the whole time. Different guards watched him; the shift had probably been changed many times during the hours she had spent with the Queen. Sabre looked tired and aggrieved.
Tassin went over to him. "I did not think I would be so long. Are you all right?"
His smile was bitter. "I'll live. It would have been nice if they'd let me sit down, maybe even offered me some food."
Tassin bit her lip. She should have realised that these women, who clearly disliked men, would not extend any courtesy or comfort to one. Until now, Sabre had taken care of her, and now it was her turn to see to his needs, since the warrior women would not allow him any real freedom. Here was her opportunity to prove that she was not a silly girl, and already she had failed him.
"I did not realise." She turned to Shizana. "Can you bring food for him?"
The huntress' lip curled. "We don't feed men; he can feed himself."
Tassin's jaw dropped, and Sabre muttered, "How nice."
Several spear points bristled around his neck, pricking his skin, and Shizana scowled. "He's not permitted to speak!"
Tassin glared at the tall woman, her hand on her dagger. "He speaks if he wishes, that is my wish!"
"You heard the Queen's orders."
"I'm also a queen. While I shall respect Molla's wishes, and will pass on her orders, you will also respect mine. Sabre may speak to me whenever he wants to, and I will have no more spears at his throat." She pushed away the nearest spear. "He was not speaking to you, so he broke no laws. It's too late to hunt now, and he's hungry, so bring him food." Tassin glowered at Shizana, and the warrior woman's eyes lowered before the royal glare.
"If it's your wish, Queen Tassin."
Tassin turned to the women who surrounded Sabre. "You may go, all of you! I do not need guards to watch him. He obeys me, and is no danger to anyone."
The women looked uncertain, but lowered their spears and walked away, casting many looks back at them.
Sabre eyed Tassin. "Obeys you?"
"I had to tell them that, or they would kill you."
"So you told them what? That I'm your slave?"
"No! You do not understand these women, they seem to hate men."
He shook his head. "I understand them perfectly. They do hate men, they're taught to by their mothers and grandmothers. To them, a man is worse than an animal, especially since he's a member of their own species."
"I must tell you the rules before you break one."
"And then they'll try to ram spears through my gut?"
"Yes. You are not allowed in a house, and you must not speak to any of these women, or touch them. You may not eat with them, and it seems you must provide your own food."
He nodded as if it was no more than he expected. "They're a hospitable bunch, but I don't mind hunting as long as we're here, and we're not going to be here very long."
"Oh?" Tassin raised her chin. "I would like a rest from travelling, and they're good to me."
"Bully for you. I'm the one who'
ll have to sleep outside and maybe get attacked for some minor, probably imagined, infraction of the rules. I don't enjoy being glared at and spat on."
She frowned. "No, of course not. Perhaps you could camp in the forest until I'm ready to journey on."
"Well, at least one of us will be comfortable."
"It will only be for a short while, I promise."
Sabre looked pensive, his brow band sparkling in the gloom. "A few days, no more. If you want to settle down here, you can count me out. These women may have once had a genuine gripe against men, but they're too hostile for my liking."
Shizana returned with a haunch of slightly burnt meat, which she gave to Tassin, who passed it on to Sabre. They followed the huntress to a hut, where she bowed to Tassin and bestowed a final glare upon Sabre before departing.
Sabre inspected the meat. "I wonder if this is edible. It looks like they threw it in the fire, maybe they pissed on it for good measure."
Tassin hesitated. "You think they would do that?"
"I wouldn't put it past them."
She glanced inside the hut. A fire burnt in a stone hearth, a pile of bedding lay in one corner and a pottery jug stood on a low table. She held out her hand. "I will wash and heat it for you."
He gave it to her, and she entered the hut, where he unthinkingly followed.
"Get out!" she whispered. "You are not allowed in here."
"Oh, right."
Sabre retreated and opened the pack, arranging his blankets outside the wall. Tassin washed and heated the meat, then sat with him while he ate it.
Between mouthfuls, he said, "I'll stay here tonight, and tomorrow I'll find a comfortable spot in the jungle. I'll show you where I am, then I'll stay there. If you don't appear within the next week, I'll leave. I'm not hanging around here like an unwanted dog."
Tassin nodded. "I don't blame you. They're not being very nice to you."
"That's the understatement of the century."
The Cyber Chronicles 02: Death Zone Page 8