by Ed Gentry
Jhoqo retreated a little way. “An unjust law. A law that limits the freedoms of our people, a law that benefits no one other than those countries who are selling Mulhorand their goods without competition from us!” Jhoqo said.
“Sell to them. Sell them the shirt off your back, but not weapons with which they will spill more innocent blood,” Taennen said.
“For a man leading a rebellion against his commanding officer, you are clinging strongly to laws,” Jhoqo said.
Taennen paused a moment before responding, “I don’t care about the law anymore. I care about what’s right. Profiting from blood and war is wrong. Stopping you from making that happen is right.”
“War is business, and it will happen with or without us. We should benefit from it!” Jhoqo said.
“You see benefit for our people measured by the coin in their pockets. I see the benefit of a clear conscience, a clean spirit, and bloodless hands, the benefit of other countries expanding their trade with us because of our morals and beliefs, the benefit of trusting our leaders.”
Jhoqo’s face twisted, and he lunged forward. Taennen avoided his blade and stumbled back. He gained his feet in time to block another attack with his shield. His slash at Jhoqo’s lower arm was likewise thwarted.
Taennen moved faster than he had ever moved before, but it was not enough. Jhoqo’s blade sank into a gap in his armor near the bottom of his stomach. Taennen hopped back from the man’s reach but ignored the wound.
“This place, this citadel, represents everything the South should be. It is strong, promotes community, and offers opportunity for both trade and security,” Jhoqo said.
“It was built on laws and trust and charged with maintaining them both. It does all those things you said, but it does them openly, not in the dark, behind closed doors, and not by the murder of innocents,” Taennen said.
The noise of battle around them was dwindling. The Maquar, Durpari, and formians outnumbered the Chondathans, and the two separate clashes had become one as the Chondathans converged near the front gate. They formed a tight defensive circle and held their enemies at bay. The dazzling lights from the tower stopped, and a cry of the mage manning the post was heard below as the man fell to his death in the courtyard.
“The tower is ours,” Taennen said.
Jhoqo growled and ran for Neversfall. Taennen’s eyes locked with Adeenya’s as she was finishing off an opponent. His eyes lingered a moment before he turned and gave chase to Jhoqo. He followed the man through the door and up the stairs, both of them leaping several steps at a time. His body ached and his muscles quivered with fatigue.
Taennen closed the gap between them to only a few steps as they were halfway up the staircase. He reached out with his curved khopesh, entangling Jhoqo’s ankle. The older man fell forward, his face slamming into the edge of a step. Jhoqo rolled over quickly, his sword held aloft in defense. Taennen winced to see his mentor’s face covered in blood, his nose askew. His stomach did not ache with remorse, but his heart filled with pity.
“Kill me, then,” Jhoqo said, blood dribbling from his mouth when he spoke.
“Not unless I must,” Taennen shook his head.
Jhoqo smirked. “You speak of what is right, yet you’re simply a coward, too afraid to do the right thing. Too afraid to see our homeland attain the glory that is its right. Like everyone else, you’re not troubled by your conscience, you’re scared. That’s why the others had to die, that’s why I sacrificed them on those patrols. They would not allow the future of the South to emerge from destiny. I thought better of you, but I was wrong. The right thing isn’t always easy, son. I tried to teach you that. I can see I failed.” He swung the falchion at Taennen’s ankles, only to be blocked once more. Taennen shoved the blade away, breaking Jhoqo’s grip. The falchion clattered down the steps.
Taennen stared at the man for a long moment before driving forward, his blade sinking into Jhoqo’s gut. He twisted the weapon, eliciting a groan from the man. “You did not fail. I learned the lesson well.”
Chapter Twenty-four
Adeenya limped toward Taennen as he emerged from the tower. Strips of cloth applied by one of her men stemmed the blood flowing from several wounds. The sword in her hand was dull, covered in gore that hid its sheen. She motioned toward the tower but did not ask the question.
Taennen nodded and scanned the courtyard. The fight was over. Weapons, shields, and armor littered the ground. Many Chondathans were dead, their bodies scattered across the stained courtyard. Those who had surrendered or been knocked out were being corralled by the formians at the front gate. The monstrous prisoners, goblins and others, were also dragged from the prison building and lined up at the gate in chains. Many of them screeched in protest but were quickly quieted by the formians.
“How many of ours did we lose?” Taennen asked.
Adeenya grimaced and said, “More than half. There are barely a dozen of us left now.”
Taennen nodded and stared at the rain-laden clouds, wishing they would drop their burden on his face to cool and soothe him.
“Why did he do it?” Adeenya asked, staring at the sky.
“For the good of the South,” Taennen said. “He felt he had to.”
Adeenya dropped her eyes to face him but said nothing.
“What now?” she asked. When Taennen did not answer, she continued, nodding toward Guk. “They can take us easily now.”
“They could,” Taennen said.
“So we win the citadel just to become worker slaves?” she asked.
“No,” Taennen said.
“So they’ll leave, having helped us out of kindness?” she said, incredulity obvious in her tone.
“No. They received their compensation,” he said, pointing to the shackled monsters and unconscious Chondathans the formians were dragging away.
Adeenya’s face wrinkled before her eyes went wide. “No! You didn’t …”
Taennen said nothing, only stared at Guk, who returned the gaze. Adeenya looked away.
“We needed them,” Taennen said, not looking at her.
“You’re a slaver. You realize that, don’t you?” she said.
“We needed their help. Without the formians, we’d be dead by now and Jhoqo—” Taennen swallowed. “The Mulhorandi would have their goods.”
“Giving those men to him makes you no better than a slave trader.”
Taennen nodded. “Maybe that’s true … I don’t think I know what a crime is anymore. Is it worse to cheat, or to kill? And who decides that?”
“The laws decide,” Adeenya said.
“They follow laws too,” he said, pointing to the formians. “Their laws are just different from ours …”
“They’re wrong,” she said.
“Not to them,” he replied.
“Laws can’t be subjective like that,” Adeenya said. “Their meaning, their purpose, must be agreed upon for them to work.”
Taennen shrugged. “And when does that happen?”
Adeenya did not respond but furrowed her brow.
“So everybody should just break the laws they don’t agree with, like Jhoqo did?” she said after a few moments.
“No,” he said. “But they should have the courage to stand against the ones they feel are wrong.”
“I don’t see the difference,” she said.
Several breaths passed in silence. Then Guk approached them, stopping a few steps away. He seemed no worse for the battle, showing no injuries at all.
“You’ll leave now?” Taennen asked.
“My other people will come soon to help us move the new workers,” Guk said.
“And then?” Taennen asked.
“We will gather our strength,” Guk said. “Some workers will stay. Others will join the main hive. More from there will come here.”
“And then you’ll come back for more workers,” Taennen said.
“Yes,” Guk said.
“Until then,” the Maquar said. The formian’s honesty,
while brutal in impact and intent, was refreshing to Taennen. He’d had his fill of deception.
“Yes,” Guk said, before turning back to his followers.
“They’ll come back and take anyone in the citadel, won’t they?” she asked.
“They’ll come back for everyone in the South, eventually,” Taennen said.
Adeenya failed to breathe for a moment before nodding, her eyes finding Taennen’s.
“We could try to kill them now, stop them,” she said.
Taennen’s mouth formed a tiny, tight grin. “With what army? They would slaughter us with little effort,” he said.
Adeenya nodded. “So we just let them go?”
“Yes. They were out there before. Nothing’s really changed,” he said. “Besides, they kept their word, and now I’ll keep mine.”
Adeenya frowned but said nothing.
“Both the men I’ve called father in my life taught me the importance of keeping my word. They couldn’t have both been wrong,” he said.
“They were both criminals, Taennen,” Adeenya said.
Taennen agreed and said, “One broke laws he thought unjust for what he believed was the good of everyone. He, at least, died trying to do what he believed in. The other broke laws he did believe in to feed himself and his child. He lost his freedom, betrayed by someone he loved.”
Adeenya raised an eyebrow. “The Taennen I met when all of this started wouldn’t have condoned either crime,” she said.
“He’s in that tower if you want to go ask him,” Taennen said, turning to face Neversfall. He craned his neck to take in the full height of the structure and thought about why it had been built. Some said to protect the South. Others said to fill the pockets of Southerners. Looking at the smooth stones that climbed toward the heavens, Taennen knew both were right. He also knew that it did not matter. Intention meant nothing, motives were pointless. Declarations and dedications never made anything happen. The tower had been built because someone saw the need to take action. The tower stood because accomplishments meant more than plans.
“I’m not sure, even after all of this, if I would condone either,” Adeenya said.
When Taennen did not respond, she continued. “Maybe the reason for breaking the law is more important than the law itself.”
“Sometimes, I think, you have to do the wrong thing for the right reasons.”
“Sounds like justification to me. A criminal might say the same thing about stealing,” Adeenya said.
“A criminal does the wrong things for the wrong reasons,” Taennen countered. “It’s a fine distinction.”
“What do we do about the people behind the operation that Jhoqo worked for?” Adeenya asked. She paused a moment and added, “My father is one of them.”
“I’m sorry he is involved, Adeenya.”
Adeenya nodded. “I probably shouldn’t feel so surprised. When Jhoqo talked of patriotism, he reminded me of my father. It was almost as though the two were of the same mind. My father has always taken the path of profit for profit’s sake. But there have to be others. What do we do about them?”
“We find them.”
“Taennen, how do we do that? Anyone could have been involved. The rajah himself might be behind it, for all the One!”
“They’ll come to us,” he said.
“Why would anyone reveal themselves by coming here?”
Taennen kicked a sword from the hand of a nearby Chondathan corpse.
“The weapons,” he said. “They need weapons. There’s a fortune down there. They’ll have to come for them. How we stop them is the better question.”
Adeenya patted him on the shoulder and said, “We collapse the tunnels.”
Taennen looked at her, beautiful even through the pain, sweat, blood, and fatigue on her face. “We stay, then?”
“The citadel needs to be defended,” she said.
“Reinforcements?”
“With any luck, we’ll find among these bodies a pendant that was stolen from me. With it, we can contact someone back home for help,” she said.
“Whom do we trust?” he asked.
“We contact those we’ve always trusted and hope we’re right to do so.”
“What if the leaders of Durpar and Estagund are behind it all?” he asked.
Adeenya looked back to the sky and said, “Then we stop them. All of them.”
“Of course,” Taennen said, casting his eyes up to the tower again. “Of course we do.”
About the Author
Ed Gentry started writing fiction when he entered a Wizards of the Coast open call and plans to continue doing so for many years to come. He lives a happy life with his wife and cats in Indiana.
Visit his website at http://www.edgentry.com.
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