by Guy Antibes
“I was thinking,” Sara said.
Willa took a little time to answer. “It’s too late to think.”
“Guns have a longer range than the fire weapons. Unless Belonnia can cast their fire farther than a ball can go or even an arrow, it’s not the kind of weapon that will change war.”
“Both of them will change war,” Willa said.
Sara knew Willa spoke the truth. “I guess they will, each in their own way, until something else is invented. I think we’re entering a new age of discovery, certainly a new world of war. If we can harness the power of the fire liquid and percussive powder, we might be able to do more than just fight each other.”
“You think more on that.” Willa said through chattering teeth. “I think we’re reaching the top. It’s bare up here.”
“That means Parthy.” Sara wanted to charge ahead, but she couldn’t summon the strength to do so. They crossed the summit. A stack of stones stood denoting the border and from then on, they took the downward part of the trail for half an hour until they entered woods again. The trail opened up into a flat clearing.
“Here is where I will rest my body.” Willa slid off her horse and lay down, wrapping herself in blankets.
Sara took the horses and tied them up where they could get some snow and gave them the last of the carrots. She grabbed another blanket and laid down next to Willa, making sure they had their guns wrapped up along with them. The second she closed her eyes, she fell into a dreamless sleep.
Birds woke Sara up. Willa still slept while Sara rummaged around for the bag that held the little pot and kindling. This time Willa would wake up to the smell of brewing tea.
“Willa.” Sara called. The woman didn’t respond so Sara shook her.
Her friend stirred. “I’m not well, Sara.”
Sara helped Willa to a sitting position. “Drink some tea and have some trail bread.” Her friend took a few sips and a bite of the bread, but didn’t eat anymore.
“We have to leave. You lay back down while I get everything ready.”
Willa did so and remained inert while Sara saddled the horses and found some grass to shove into each one’s mouth.
“Get up. Help me get you on a horse.”
“I can’t. I can’t. Leave me here.” Willa’s voice sounded weak. She felt Willa’s forehead. A fever. She recoiled at the thought of loosing Willa like she’d already lost Meldey.
Sara shook her head. “Now who is suffering from Battle Fatigue? Get up now!” She shouted at Willa and that got the woman to her feet swaying. She took off Willa’s blankets. The woman shivered and sweat at the same time. “We’ll run into some Parthian soldiers this morning, after that we can take our time.”
Willa tried as best as she could, but she wobbled in the saddle. She’d fall off if they continued. Sara grabbed some rope from one of the soldiers’ bags and tied her to the horse. Sara would have to lead a string down the mountain. She’d never done such a thing before, but she had to save Willa.
The sky was bright and cloudless, but that could change like it did on the Belonnian side. Sara led out the string onto the trail. There was less snow on this side and less mud. At least the footing would be better.
She thought about the entire Belonnian mission while she fought with the horses. Willa had to be secured a number of times as she shifted on the horse. Sara again had visions that her friend would end up like Meldey. Down they went for what seemed like hours. The visions of soldiers burnt bodies burst into her head and Sara had to stop. She jumped off of the horse and retched. She didn’t know if she was getting sick or if the relief of finally escaping from Belonnia was the cause. Taking some snow and rubbing her face in it seemed to help as she mounted and struggled to get the horses going again. She had to go on—nothing could stop her.
She hadn’t any idea what time it was since the trail shifted, changing where the sun came and went into clouds as they descended. All she knew is that they traveled further into Parthy and further away from Belonnia.
Willa moaned. Sara stopped again.
“Untie me. I think I’m a little better,” Willa said. Her voice barely made it past the blankets wrapped around her. Sara fulfilled her wish and Willa sat up and took a deep breath. “Don’t get any ideas about galloping down this hill. I’m still sick, but better. A little.” She squinted that brought relief to Sara.
The sun, although weak, continued to shower them with a tiny measure of warmth as the sky cleared a bit. It no longer played hide and seek with the mountains that rose up behind them. If Willa felt as comforted by a Parthian sun as she did, they would both make it. Sara looked back and Willa still swayed in the saddle, but she managed to hold her own against the horse. Sara still led the horse string.
“Halt!” A soldier dressed in Parthian blue stepped out of a hut a few paces into the woods from a bend in the trail. “This is a closed pathway. You’ll have to turn around and return to Belonnia.” The man stood five feet tall, more than a head shorter than Sara. She wondered if she should pull out her gun and shoot her way through.
No! Sara forced herself to think. “We’re Parthians escaping from Belonnia.”
“How can you prove that?” His companion walked out of the hut and looked at the both of them with a bit more suspicion.
The soldiers wouldn’t know what the gun looked like. Sara thought. “Take us to your camp—to an officer. Let me talk to him.”
Sara could see the man work the request over in his mind.
“Can’t you see she is very ill? Do you have a healer?”
Her request seemed to work. “Oh. That’s different. Come this way. Garin, I’ll be back soon.” The short soldier said.
“Do you want to ride? I have a few extra horses.”
He turned and blinked. “Sure.” He had to jump up to mount. “This is Belonnian gear,” he said as he moved to the front.
“We just escaped from Belonnia and have to get to Parth with valuable information. My name is Sara and she is Willa.” Perhaps if she gave him names it might settle the guard down.
“Spies.” He sounded impressed. “I know the Duke has women spies. You must be some of them.”
“Duke Northcross? Yes we are.”
That made the man speed up a bit.
“Whoa! I have a sick woman here.”
“Right you are, Sara. I don’t want to be bounced to death.” Spoken like the true Willa.
Less than half an hour later, the soldier led them into a permanent encampment. It reminded Sara of the houses at Ben’s mines — her mines in ten months. The camp held about fifty men. They attracted a following as the soldier led them to a larger stone house.
“Captain Robin’s inside.” The soldier dismounted and disappeared.
Sara got off of her horse and stretched. Then she asked one of the soldiers to help with Willa. “Do you have a healer? She’s ill.”
Another soldier stepped up. “We’ll take her to the infirmary. It’s just across the way.” He nodded towards a white wooden house.
“I’ll be all right,” Willa said, “with these to gentlemen to guide me.” She looked one in the eye and squinted. “And don’t you be getting any ideas, young man.” She slapped his hand and weakly giggled. The fever had affected her companion and Sara couldn’t wipe the smile off of her face.
“Miss?” A voice behind her caused Sara to turn around. Captain Robin had black hair—not robin-like at all.
“Miss Sara Featherwood. Recently returned from Okalla. We had to escape over the hills. Two others of our group were captured on their way to the sea.”
“Your arm… Miss Featherwood?”
Sara showed him her tattoo. “This comes off.” Do you have some liquor?
Captain Robin went into this house and returned with a bottle. Sara poured some of the alcohol on a rag. “See?” She rubbed the solvent into her wrist and the tattoo faded.
He nodded. “Come into my office where it’s warmer.” He led her into his house. An aide sat at a
desk, writing and stood as the captain entered. He saluted and stood as the captain showed Sara into his office.
Once they were seated, he began, “So what do I do with you?”
“First of all, my friend needs to be well enough to leave or I’ll have to proceed by myself. I need to report to Duke Northcross as soon as possible.”
One eyebrow went up. “You know the Duke?”
“I do indeed.” Better than you know, Captain Robin. “I’ve important information about Belonnia. The Emperor has been killed, for one.”
“When?”
“Less than two weeks ago. There are a few thousand soldiers encamped less than half a day’s ride from the start of the mountains, just outside the village of Dunst. They’ve been assembling for a while.”
Captain Robin stood up. “How can I believe you?”
Sara remained sitting. “If you look at our horses, they are Belonnian cavalry mounts. If I was a Belonnian spy would I be so blatant? Also, I don’t know if you’ve seen one of these.” She pulled out her gun and laid it on the captain’s desk.
“A gun? I’ve heard about those.”
“From Parth. I took it with me.” She didn’t tell him someone else had slipped it in her luggage.
“I believe you, Miss Featherwood. What can I do to help?”
Sara paused, ordering her thoughts. “You’ll need to notify your superiors of the Belonnian threat. Each pass might have an army waiting to invade.”
“Just like last time.”
Sara shook her head. “Not like last time. Do you have any archers? Crossbowman?”
“A few, why?”
“They have a new weapon. It spits fire. I used it on them to escape. That’s why we made it over the mountains even through we were being pursued. I captured one of the contraptions. I won’t give you a demonstration, but the liquid fire that they use is worse than boiling oil and it’s portable. You should make some shields or something. If you can tack some sheets of metal on them, all the better. If you had guns you could shoot them before they got to you.”
“You say you captured one?”
Had the man been listening? Sara sighed. “Is your superior on the way to Parth?”
Captain Robin nodded.
“Then you or one of your officers can accompany me and I’ll tell him directly.”
“Good. General Heathergate has birds that can precede you to Parth.”
“I’ve met General Heathergate, so I know he’ll believe me.” Sara rose and went outside. The captain followed her to the horse that had the fire apparatus.
“This is what they look like. There is a spray of fire that comes out of this nozzle. I suppose if you got close enough you could cut the tube. That would be very dangerous. I don’t know if they’ve scaled this up. They probably have, but the tank and the tube would be a weakness.”
“Who are you?” Captain Robin said with his mouth just about hanging open.
“Sara Featherwood of Shattuk Downs.”
“Ah. Shattuk Downs. You’re the rescuer of the Duke? The heroine of Obridge? Sara of Shattuk Downs? I know who you are.” His eyes softened. Sara backed away from him.
“I did what I could.” She couldn’t keep from blushing.
“You’ve done wonderful things.”
Sara thought of the burnt soldiers and the two officers that Willa and she had shot. She watched as Meldey slit the throat of a burning Hans the Emperor dead. “I wouldn’t quite put it that way.”
A man in civilian clothes walked up to them. “Your friend? She’s down with a pretty bad fever. I’d suggest that she stay here for at least a week.”
“I wanted her to accompany me to Parth.”
“In a week, that will be fine, but not until them or you’ll be risking her life. From listening to her rant and rave, I’d rather she left with you, but I can’t in good conscious let her go.” The healer smiled.
Sara looked at the captain. “If I can get a bite to eat, I’ll leave as soon as I can. I’ll take two of my horses.”
“While you eat, I’ll have my men saddle up fresh ones. Just tell us what you want to take with you.
~
Sara stood up in her stirrups wearing a pair of borrowed cavalry pants beneath her dress with her knife strapped outside of the pants leg. Her thighs had appreciated the extra protection. The General’s fort lay within sight, its lights acting as a beacon in the evening.
“Who goes there?” The sentry leaned over wall, holding a lantern in his hand as they approached.
“Lieutenant Waterwheel from Captain Robin’s Camp on Hillyard’s Pass with vital messages for the General.” Waterwheel rode up to the gate with Sara behind. As soon as the gap expanded he rode through into the fort.
They traveled past barracks after barracks. The camp reminded her of the training camp that now housed the Women’s College, but it housed many more troops.
Waterwheel trotted up to a large building. “Where’s the General?”
A soldier pointed to a residential house next door. They rode to the house and dismounted. A soldier had just walked out of the General’s living quarters followed by an older uniformed man.
“We have vital news!” Waterwheel said very loudly.
The General peered into the darkness. “Sara Featherwood! Is that you? Come in, come in. What are you doing here? I’m sure this is important, but not too important for a glass of wine to clear your head on a winter’s night. What were you doing in Robin’s camp?”
Waterwheel nodded and looked at Sara. They entered his house and sat in the General’s parlor while he poured them some wine. He made them take a sip first.
“I was sent to Okalla on a student exchange mission.”
“Ferdik went as well. I supposed you met him?” the General said and then his eyebrows rose. “Then what are you doing here? My Salvation! Did you come over the pass?”
Sara nodded.
The General shook his head. “I can’t believe it, but you did meet the little bastard, though. Sorry for the language. I’m a soldier, after all. What are you here for?”
“I wasn’t very kind to him—a somewhat mutual thing. The Emperor was killed while I was there. I don’t know what will happen to the Parthian students. Two of my friends were captured trying to leave. Another died.” Sara’s throat constricted at the mention of Meldey. “My companion and I…”
“Willa Waters? I met her at the Narrows. An interesting woman, but I still can’t believe you are here, in my camp.”
“She’s ill, but in good hands in Captain Robin’s camp. As we fled to Parthy, we passed an encampment just to the east of Dunst, if you know where that is.”
The General nodded. “How many men?”
“At least two thousand. They’d been gathering for at least a month. They also have a new weapon. I have one of them tied to my packhorse.”
The General rubbed his close-cropped white hair. “You’ve been busy. What’s this weapon?”
Sara nodded. “It’s a fire thrower. You’ll have to make shields or something to keep the liquid from splashing on you. Water doesn’t put the fire out, but it will keep it from spreading. If you can cover shields with something that doesn’t burn, you might be protected.”
“If they’re such an important weapon, how did you get one?”
“I stole it. They had one sitting out at a mountain camp. A blizzard howled as Willa and I rode slowly through their camp as we rode up the pass and I grabbed it. We weren’t even challenged. Everyone huddled in their tents.” Sara shrugged.
“I must say, Miss Featherwood, or I should say Countess, you don’t cease to amaze.”
Waterwheel straightened up in his chair at the mention of ‘Countess’.
“I have birds. A few of them are trained to go to Lord Northcross’s coops. Write your message down. Keep it brief, the paper only holds so much.” The General led them into his study and let Sara sit at a desk.
“What have you left out?”
“You have the
essentials, but there are more… details.”
“I’m sure. I’m sure.” He stroked his bare chin. “I suppose you’ll be leaving for Parth as soon as possible. I have a carriage you can take. If you don’t mind sitting with drivers, we can get you to Parth in four days.”
“That’s fine. Let me show you the weapon. I’m going to take it with me, so, hopefully, this will be your only chance to see it,” she said as she gave the written message to the General.
On the way out, he gave the note to his aide. “Bird to Northcross. Use the best one we have. It’s vital.” The General didn’t ask to see the note nor did he ask what she wrote.
Sara unhitched the tank and the wand and walked to a fire grate warming up a few guards. She dipped the end in the fire. He took a step back.
“If you can get a crossbow bolt through tank it might blow up or slash the tube. I wouldn’t be surprised if they have larger weapons, but they might not be able to get them over the pass I crossed, but there are roads over the larger passes.” Everyone took a step back as Sara laid down a squirt of the liquid fire on the ground.
The General nodded. “I’ll get my men on it. Are you sure you won’t leave this behind?”
“There’s hardly any liquid left and I’d like Doctor Hedge to examine it.”
“You’re right as, I’ll bet, you usually are.”
~~~
Chapter Eighteen
Another Unwelcome Homecoming
The bleak winter land stretched out on both sides of the road. They had left hilly country in the afternoon of the day previous and were one more day out of Parth. The ride had given Sara too much time to think. The shock of Meldey’s death had subsided, as did the images of the burnt men in the mountains.
She wished Willa had joined her as she looked across at the two snoring drivers. She pulled the cloak tighter to her body. The experience of being abducted, tortured, escaping and all of the deaths that occurred during that time preyed on her mind. Sara had to make sense of it all before she returned to Parth.
Action was sought and action she found—too much, perhaps. She wondered if Willa, having to sit up in the driving snow while she slept, led to her illness. Sara could just as well be the one lying in an army bed at Captain Robin’s camp. What else could she have done? Guilt began to cloud her mind. She fought it off as she would an opponent. Sara could feel bad about what happened, but what was her fault? The soldiers she had burned wouldn’t have lasted in the bitter cold and if they did, their lives would be ruined. The bodies were already disfigured before she laid another round of flame on them.