"I want you to take a message to Aran for me."
"Aran?"
"Your Daliph."
"You will address him as the Most Honored Leader of the Toreem Daliphate."
"No. I will not. He lost that privilege when he died the first time."
"Died?" The man laughed.
"Yes. Died. Or didn't you know that your leader was a death walker?"
There was an angry mutter from the men behind him. Death walkers were hated and feared within the Daliphana. Anyone discovered with the knowledge of death walker magic was immediately killed.
The man laughed easily. "And how would you know?"
K'lrsa shook her head. "It doesn't matter. What does matter is that you will take a message to him for me."
"Will I now? But my orders are to stay here until the Black Horse Tribe is restored to what is rightfully theirs."
"That's never going to happen."
"Why? Because your gods are on your side? Hadn't you noticed, little girl? They can't act directly on this world. They can only act through those who follow them. And as far as I can see, that's pretty little girls like you. Not much to fear, I'm afraid."
K'lrsa breathed through her nose as she glared at the man and fought the urge to send him somewhere so far away he'd never find his way home. Like the middle of those oceans she'd heard about.
Unfortunately, she needed the smug, arrogant little shit.
"As I was saying…I need you to tell Aran something for me."
"Tell him yourself."
"No. I have no desire to set foot in the Toreem Daliphate ever again. Now…"
"Why don't you quit playing at leader, little girl?"
K'lrsa flushed with anger as the men behind him laughed. "Tell Aran I'm sending his troops back to him. And if he wants them to live he'll keep them on his side of the barren lands. We'll send someone to negotiate a new trade deal."
She willed him to the plains in front of Toreem.
The remaining men whispered back and forth, looking around for their leader.
She turned to Vedhe. "Who are the worst of this lot?"
Vedhe looked at them through her viewing tube. "That one. And that one."
She pointed to two men standing towards the back of the crowd.
"I want you all to watch what I do here. I am going to send those men out into the middle of the plains. Far enough away that they have to walk back, but close enough for you to see where they go. I can send them farther, but it might kill them. I can send all of you back to Toreem right now, but it will very likely kill you. I don't want to do that."
She focused on the two men and willed them into the middle of the plains behind the encampment. As they appeared, one stumbled into the other but both were alive.
The men before her muttered darkly, but she was safe, protected by the gathering grounds.
"Leave. Now. Go back to where you came from. Anyone still here tomorrow, I'll send to Toreem myself."
She started to turn away and then turned back, remembering F'lia.
Raising her voice, she said, "Anyone from the tribes who wants to return to us and is willing to vow to follow our ways, may do so."
She didn't care if it wasn't her place to make the offer. It was the right thing to do.
Chapter 93
"What now?" Vedhe asked her as they sat on the steps of the central platform and watched the Daliph's men pack up their tents.
"Now we wait and see if anyone wants to return. And if the Daliph's men leave."
"Do you think they will?"
K'lrsa shook her head. "I don't know. Is what I did to those men enough to overcome Aran's orders?"
A man wearing the brown uniform of a Toreem soldier walked towards them, head down as he pushed past curious members of the tribes.
He stopped just out of arm's reach.
"Yes?" K'lrsa asked.
He looked up at her, tensed as if ready to fight. "I want to join the tribes."
"What? Really?" That was the last thing she'd expected him to say. "Why?"
"I don't want to go back there."
"You're a man, it can't be that bad."
He sniffed. "The Daliphana aren't that bad for some men. But for others…I…I've heard you don't care here, what a man does, who a man is, as long as he contributes to the tribe."
She nodded.
"I want that."
"And can you contribute?"
"I think so. I can hunt. I can ride."
She chewed on her lip. "We are losing most of the Black Horse Tribe. Their land was almost completely desert, but we'll still need to patrol it."
Vedhe leaned over. "Don't you need to ask D'lan? Or the other tribal leaders?"
"For one man? No."
The man relaxed slightly, smiling.
"I haven't said yes, yet. Vedhe, can you test him? And you'll have to take the same oath the rest of us did."
He nodded as Vedhe raised the tube to her eye and studied him. She looked surprised by whatever she saw, but only said, "He's true. He'll be a strong member of the tribes."
"Then be welcome."
"Thank you! I'll get my things and be back."
"Be careful. If they know what you've done…"
"I will."
He walked away, head held high, a skip to his step. K'lrsa smiled, watching him, glad to have done something positive for the day.
But it turned out that the man wasn't alone in his desire to join the tribes.
By the fifth time it happened, a small crowd had gathered to watch, including M'lara. K'lrsa sent her to fetch D'lan, knowing that if things continued the council leaders were going to want a say.
He arrived just as a sixth and seventh man presented themselves for judgment. Vedhe approved the first one, but spat at the second one. "This one is evil. His mother should've drowned him when he was born."
The man glared at her with pure hatred in his eyes, but turned and left without another word.
"What is this, K'lrsa?" D'lan demanded as the other man took a seat behind them on the pedestal with the others of his fellows who'd already asked for shelter.
"These men wish to join the tribes. They're all trained soldiers, capable of living off the land, and hard workers."
"Who's to say they won't betray us?"
"Vedhe. The object she took from the Hidden City allows her to see into someone's true nature, to judge them."
D'lan harrumphed.
"She was pretty accurate about you last night."
He laughed slightly, acknowledging the point. "What are we going to do with them? Where will they go?"
"Someone will need to patrol the Black Horse Tribe lands. Whatever's left of that tribe can do it, but they'll need more people, especially Riders."
"But this many men and no women. It'll cause problems. And trying to integrate them into our way of life…They don't think like we do, K'lrsa."
She studied the men. "They'll have to learn to if they want to stay. We won't allow what happens in the Daliphana to happen here." She turned back to D'lan. "Two have wives and children. They'd like to bring them here, eventually."
He shook his head. "No. If they want to stay they need to marry someone in the tribes."
"But, D'lan. They have families."
"I'm sorry. We've always accepted outsiders into the tribes, but it's always been through marriage. It's the best way. If they want to come, they have to come alone and marry someone of the tribes."
She winced. "Do we have that many single women to marry them?"
"Some will not want to marry," Vedhe added. "At least two of them so far."
"Oh." K'lrsa looked at the men again, trying to figure out which of the two it was. "Well, that's alright then. As long as they contribute and follow our ways. Isn't it, D'lan?"
He nodded. "I'm fine with it. But I don't speak for all of the councilmembers."
"No. But they'll listen to you. Call a meeting. Tell them this is the price I demand for rescuing you from the D
aliph's troops."
D'lan choked. "The price you demand for rescuing us?"
"Yes."
D'lan looked like he wanted to say more, but two more of the Daliph's soldiers approached, small packs slung over their shoulders.
Chapter 94
Of course, just because the men wanted to join the tribes and Vedhe judged them fit to do so didn't mean everyone agreed. As the day wore on, more and more people gathered around to watch the men ask for sanctuary.
By the end of the day, almost a hundred men from the Daliphana were seated behind and around Vedhe and K'lrsa, and over half of the tribes seemed to be gathered in front of them buzzing like a bee hive.
The wise man for the White Horse Tribe came forward, bearing the oath rod. "If they're going to stay, they need to swear the same oath as the rest."
K'lrsa nodded. "They will."
"Who's going to take them on?" a young man from the Tall Bluff tribe asked.
"Whoever wants to. My tribe could use more Riders. And we could use the training they can provide in how to use swords. Isn't that true, D'lan?"
He nodded. "The White Horse Tribe will welcome fifteen of these men. I speak for our Council when I say this."
The men shifted nervously, whispering back and forth, probably doing the math just like K'lrsa was. Fifteen to the White Horse Tribe, but what about the rest?
"These men are strangers to us. They don't understand our ways. They aren't like us," a woman shouted from the crowd.
K'lrsa stood. She was sore and sweaty and tired after a long day sitting outside, but she had to keep going for just a little longer. "We were once one with the Daliphana before the gods took us away and offered us sanctuary. They may not be like us now, but we were all one people once."
She stared down the woman. "We treat all as equal because we know that every man, woman, and child must contribute or we perish. They will learn. Or they will go back to where they came from."
"We can never go back." It was the first man who'd come to her. "If we go back, they'll kill us. If you won't take us now, we'll…"
She rested a hand on his shoulder. They couldn't travel across the desert. They'd die.
"If my people won't take you, I'll send you across the desert to the Northern lands."
She didn't know what the gods would think of that, but she didn't care either.
She turned back to the crowd. "I know there will be adjustments. These men will say the wrong things and do the wrong things. But they will learn and we will be better for having them amongst us. Each generation we benefit from new blood joined to ours. Members of the tribes have always been free to choose mates from outside of our ranks. Why would we deny that now?"
"But there are so many of them," a man protested.
"We will adapt. As we always have."
"What if they change us?"
"Then it will be change for the better. Or why else would we do it?"
K'lrsa chewed on her lip as she watched those in the crowd shift and mutter. It wouldn't be an easy transition, but she knew it was the right choice to make.
She tucked a stray strand of hair, stiff with sweat, back into her braid. "I'm tired. As I'm sure you all are as well. Tomorrow we start the long trek home. These men will take a vow, the same one you took. And once they have, please, welcome them to your fires. Give them shelter for the night. Show that you're better than the men of the Daliphana."
She stepped down from the platform and made her way back to her tent.
In the morning, she hoped they'd be able to leave in peace. Most of the soldiers and members of the Black Horse Tribe had already left.
If the rest weren't gone by morning she'd have to send them away, and she was soul-sick at the thought of such senseless deaths.
Chapter 95
It was early morning and K'lrsa lay on her sleeping pallet, staring at the walls of the tent. She could hear people stirring outside. No cook fires. No wood to fuel them nor food to cook. Just the sounds of people starting another day.
Would it be a day of promise? Freedom at last?
Or a day of conflict and death?
She knew she could send the soldiers away with the pendant, but she didn't want to. She detested the thought of so much life wasted.
Maybe the Riders could drive away the rest, spare her having to do it.
But could she ask them to risk their lives like that when she could so easily handle it?
She dragged herself out of bed and splashed her face with cold water. It was nice to be so close to a natural well, a luxury she didn't normally have. That would end today.
Her tribe would return to her lands and she'd go with them.
Or would she?
She could return to the Hidden City. To Badru.
It meant leaving M'lara behind or taking her to a land of the dead where she'd be the only child.
Or she could stay with the men who hadn't been welcomed into one of the tribes. Could work to form them into Riders. Start over. Away from D'lan's influence and all the people who'd known her her whole life.
Find her own way.
It would be good to grow past the girl they still thought she was.
But would M'lara want to come with her?
And what about Vedhe? Would she leave now? Go back home?
Strange to think how the girl had become a friend, the only one who understood her loss.
K'lrsa stepped outside and there was M'lara, crouched in the shadow of a nearby tent.
"Hey there." K'lrsa smiled at the sight of her precocious little sister.
"Hey." M'lara joined her. "Are you ready?"
"For what?"
"To go home?"
K’lrsa sat down next to Vedhe who nodded to a spot behind their tents where Fallion and Kriger stood. "They arrived this morning."
"How did they get here so fast?"
Vedhe shrugged.
"K?" M'lara sat down next to her looking up with those big brown eyes of hers. "We are going home aren't we?"
K'lrsa ruffled her hair and picked a stray twig out of it, smiling to herself at how much M'lara was like she'd been when she was younger.
"I don’t know."
M'lara jumped to her feet. "You promised! You promised you'd come back and you'd stay!"
"Shhh. It's okay. Calm down. I did come back, see?"
She crossed her arms. "But you're not going to stay."
"Well…" She glanced at Vedhe. "I thought maybe we should take some of the new soldiers and patrol the border for a while. Help form them into a new tribe."
M'lara's shoulders slumped. "And I have to go live with D'lan?"
"Not if you don't want to. But…M'lara. There probably won't be any other children."
"I don't care. I want to stay with you."
"Okay." She glanced at Vedhe. "What do you think? Are you going to stay with us? Or go back to your people?"
Vedhe was silent for a long time. "I think I'll stay for now. Until you're ready to defeat the Daliphana."
"That's not going to happen."
She shrugged one shoulder.
"It isn't Vedhe. I'm not going back there. I'm not. Let someone else deal with Aran."
"Well, I'll stay regardless. There's nothing for me back home. And one of the recruits from the Daliphana has a nice butt."
"Vedhe!"
Vedhe shrugged. "He does. And there aren't enough women, right? So maybe he'd be willing to look past this." She gestured to her scarred face.
"The right man will."
"Easy to say when you're not disfigured."
K'lrsa bowed her head, acknowledging her point. "So? Ready to see if the Daliph's soldiers have left?"
The others nodded and they made their way together to the edge of camp.
Chapter 96
She walked the perimeter with Vedhe and M'lara by her side enjoying a cool morning breeze. There was a cluster of tents belonging to the Black Horse Tribe at one end and K'lrsa called to them from the safety of the ga
thering grounds.
"Are you staying with the tribes?"
J'vin stood and came to meet her. "No. We'll leave after breakfast. If that's acceptable to you, oh Ruler of the Tribes."
"Ruler of the Tribes? What are you talking about?"
"Well you certainly seem to have taken charge. Making decisions for everyone. Banishing the Daliph's men without so much as speaking to anyone else."
"Is that why you're leaving?"
"I'm a trader. I'll have better opportunities in the Daliphana."
"The tribes need traders."
"Do they, Ruler of the Tribes?"
She shook her head, looking past his shoulder to where F'lia had just emerged from one of the tents.
"F'lia." She waved her friend closer.
J'vin tensed.
"I just want to say goodbye to her. Is that such a problem?"
"She's mine now," he growled.
K'lrsa raised an eyebrow. Since when was a woman anyone's possession in the tribes? But this was a man who had chosen the Daliphana over the tribes, so maybe he really felt that way.
"Of course. I just want to say goodbye to her."
F'lia came over, her hand stroking her small belly.
"K'lrsa. Good to see you returned."
So J'vin didn't know about her late-night sneaking. He stood there, watching them. K'lrsa stared him down. "A little privacy please?"
F'lia stroked his arm. "Go. I'll be fine."
Vedhe, who'd been studying him with her viewing tube, shook her head. "He's a mean man. Very cruel."
"Oh, he's fine. He just gets upset sometimes."
Vedhe shook her head. "No. It's more than that. Here. Look." She held the tube out to F'lia.
K'lrsa slapped her hand down. "Vedhe you can't do that. Remember? The gods will take it back."
Vedhe shrugged. "I don't care. Let her see. For the child she carries if nothing else."
"Do you want to?"
"What?" F'lia looked back and forth between them, confused.
"If you put the viewer to your eye, it shows you someone's true nature." K'lrsa bit her lip, not sure if she wanted F'lia to use it or not.
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