by B N Miles
“There are so few wolves guarding those people down there. I know that wolf acted like they’re just cattle and not worth his time, but even still. It just seems too easy.”
Cam nodded a little and ran his fingers down the bark of a maple tree. He stooped to pick up a small stick and snapped it in half, his mind working through the issue.
“Nothing we can do about it,” he said. “Those people need help and they need it now. We’ll take that spot over and defend it the best we can. If it comes to it, I can burn our way out.”
“We can’t rely on your magic for everything,” she said.
“Then what use is magic at all?” He grinned at her and touched her shoulder, drawing her closer. He kissed her cheek and she wrapped her arms around his back, hugging him tight. “We’ll be okay,” he said. “No matter what happens.”
“I know,” she said. “I shouldn’t worry so much.”
He breathed her smell, spicy and piney and clean. He kissed her hair then pulled back.
“Come on,” he said. “Let’s go tell the others about the plan.”
She nodded once and took his hand in her own. Cam was surprised she was so worried about this. Miuri seemed unflappable most of the time, like nothing could get under her skin, like nothing could bother her. But now she seemed on edge and afraid, and that made Cam hesitate.
But he couldn’t afford hesitation, not right now. Not when so many people needed his help.
He turned and pulled Miuri over to Key and Felin, and the four of them talked about what they were going to do next.
14
They marched for most of the day in tense silence.
The trek down into the valley was difficult at first, the terrain steep and rocky, but soon it leveled out as they headed around the pens, giving them a wide berth. Miuri and a few of Frew’s archers acted as scouts, making sure no wolves found them as they skirted along through the forest, moving around to the back-right tower. They walked at a fast clip, not so fast that they’d be exhausted, but faster than a normal march.
When they were close, Miuri guided them along for the last hour. She took them to a tight cluster of trees and boulders and motioned for everyone to stay low and silent. It was bright out, not a cloud in the sky, though the sun was beginning to sink and the shadows grew long.
Cam watched the warriors around him grip their spears and prepare their shields. The earthworks weren’t far now, maybe a ten-minute walk from their position, and the wolves could appear at any moment.
Cam stood next to Key, their shoulders almost touching. They were forward and apart from the main group, standing between a bramble bush and a sapling, its trunk bent under the weight of its new leaves. Felin crouched nearby, her fingers moving nervously through the dirt and twigs. Theus was with the Medlar warriors. Cam had told his best friend to keep the men together and in formation. He would be going with Key, Felin, and Miuri, and their goal was to kill as many wolves as possible before opening up the pens and freeing the Humans. Meanwhile, the warriors would sweep through the rest of the camp and secure the guard posts.
The plan was simple, but Cam couldn’t help wondering if Miuri was right: maybe this seemed too easy. It could be a trap. These people could’ve been left out as bait for someone stupid and eager. But Cam was committed, and even if it was a trap, they likely didn’t expect a shaman to come burning through their defenses.
“Everyone’s ready,” Dagan said, slipping up next to Cam.
“Get them in formation,” Cam said. “Archers first. Go on Miuri’s signal.”
Dagan nodded and moved back. He snapped orders, and the warriors fell into their lines. Frew’s men stayed in a loose formation, shields and spears at the ready, while the Medlar men took up two ranks of shield and spear, their shields pressed tight against each other.
Cam inspected them and nodded his approval to Dagan as he turned and faced forward. Key joined him at the front. She left her shield on her back, since their goal wasn’t prolonged fighting but fast movements. Felin’s goal was to stay close to Cam but away from the fighting. Miuri moved off into the woods, sliding between two trees and disappearing into thin air.
The men were restless as they began a slow march toward the pens. When they got closer, Cam could smell something sour on the wind. He thought it might be fear from the men behind him, but as he got closer, he began to realize it was body odor and Human waste. He only got a whiff of it when the wind picked up a certain way. He heard groans and grunts in the distance, like animals lolling about in a huge field. The sounds and smells sent a mixture of rage and anxiety rushing through his veins, and he steeled himself, his hand tight on the grip of his sword.
Cam knew what that smell was. He knew what those sounds were. People, Human beings crammed into open-air cages, suffering and rotting.
He called a halt near the edge of the woods. He saw the outline of the earthworks through the shifting branches. The tower jutted up from the nearby corner, and Cam thought he saw movement up at the top. The archers crept forward, careful not to make any sudden movements that might draw the eye of someone watching. The rest of the warriors stayed still, kneeling behind bushes, brambles, and tree trunks.
The breeze picked up around them. Cam took deep breaths, steadying the nerves that tingled along his skin. He knew someone could die today; he knew his people might get hurt. It was always a risk when he entered into battle, but that never made it easier. He wished he could do this alone, wished he could storm that place with fire and blade and not have to risk the lives of the men that trusted him.
He glanced over his shoulder, trying to keep his anxiety from his face. Theus nodded at him, his eyes hard. He was in the center of the formation, the capstone that held each warrior together. Cam nodded back as he looked over at Kenden, Godug, Dagan, and even Rador. He didn’t always get along with every man from his village, didn’t even particularly like some of them, but they were still his men and he still wanted to see them all make it through this day.
“Cam,” Key whispered. “Look. The tower.”
He pulled his gaze forward and watched as the tower seemed to sway from side to side, like someone was climbing it. The wolf at the top peered over the edge, looking for whatever made the tower shake.
Then Miuri appeared at the top, standing a foot away from the slouched wolf. The man had only a moment to look up before Miuri plunged her sword into his throat in one easy thrust.
Cam stood, a pulse of adrenaline hitting him. “Now,” he said. “Move!”
The warriors burst up from their hiding places and ran forward, not shouting or calling out like they would in battle, but hard-eyed and determined. Cam drew his sword and ran ahead of them with Key and Felin, sprinting toward the raised earthworks.
15
Cam reached the earthworks first and slammed into it. He scrambled up, his fingers digging into the rocks and dirt. He was not graceful in his leather armor but he moved quickly. He reached the top, dirt falling down on either side, little rocks tumbling along. There were stakes set at random intervals, likely just enough to stop a horse from charging over it, but not enough to stop Cam from hopping down to the other side. Key and Felin dropped down beside him, and he heard the warriors begin to climb up and over as Cam moved forward.
The camp was a wide-open clearing with tents scattered throughout. Most of the tents were gray, with patchwork cloth keeping them together. There were cookfires burning with beaten, weather copper pots set over them, steam rising from whatever was boiling inside. Spare clothes were hung on lines, and boxes were stacked at seemingly random intervals, their contents unknown.
There was one larger central tent that looked like it could fit two dozen people inside. It had some stakes set into the ground around it to form a makeshift fence, though it wouldn’t keep anyone out if they really wanted to get in. The pens were to his left, and he could see and smell the people now, their stench almost overwhelming. They wore their normal clothes, though some of them looked
like they had on rags and rotting cloth. Several people at the edges of the pens noticed him, and they began to make excited and confused noises, their bodies crushing and pressing against the fences.
Cam pushed forward. He felt a blind rage come over him at the sight of so many starving, emaciated Humans moaning in pain. A Were came out of a tent, an annoyed expression on his face, his long, greasy black hair hanging down to his shoulders. He wore no shirt and his skinny, pale chest was covered in downy black hair. Cam sliced his throat in one easy motion, the blade severing his windpipe and tearing through arteries. It felt good use his blade in battle. All the training he’d been doing with Miuri was paying off.
Key barreled forward as more Weres began to appear from tents as a cry rang out. The warriors must have been spotted behind him, and Cam pushed on, heedless of the chaos around him. Weres appeared, some of them naked, some of them half-dressed, but all of them looked confused and angry. More spilled out from the largest tent in the center. He heard them shouting in a language he didn’t recognize, grunting and growling like animals. Those nearest began to shift, dropping down to their knees and twisting, their bodies reordering, their spines elongating, hair erupting from their backs and arms. Any wolf with clothes on shredded the cloth, the fabric bursting into strips.
Cam knew he should head directly for the pen, but instead he reached for his calm as the warriors began to spill into the camp around him. He heard Theus shouting for order, drawing the Medlar men into formation again, creating two ranks of a solid shield wall. Cam pushed it all away and embraced the quiet, the black peaceful floating calm that existed deep inside of him, and let it wrap around him once again. As soon as the calm touched his mind, he could see the priori just out of reach, and he drew it into himself.
He heard Key suck in a breath as flames spouted from his sword, rolling along its length and scattering forward over the ground. This wasn’t part of the plan, but Cam couldn’t stop himself. He had the power to burn these monsters, to sizzle their flesh and boil their blood. He had the power to avenge all those Humans, suffering like animals in the hot sun.
A blue-red roiling mass of flame shot forward and a soft roar filled the air. Cam threw fire in a long, rolling spout, slamming it into the nearest tents. They caught instantly and began to blaze, burning bright. He heard wolves screaming as they scrambled away from him, and he walked forward, his heart racing, the power ripping through him in waves of ecstasy and delight. He wasn’t meant to burn so much, wasn’t supposed to call the fire at all.
But he couldn’t help himself. The wolves had to pay for what they’d done.
Cam burned anything that moved. He ashed tents, half-shifted wolves, stakes, and debris. He burned it all, letting the flames roll down his arms and along his sword before burning a sick path forward, turning the ground black.
More wolves came out of the tent and began to shift. He heard growling around him as his fire continued to channel. He let out a groan of pleasure as he watched several wolves burn, their skin and hair bubbling, still partially Human. Their horrifying corpses barely gave him pause as he turned his flames outward again. The largest tent caught fire, and there were screams from inside as the edges turned black and thick columns of smoke erupted into the air.
“Cam!” Key shouted his name. He pulled back his fire and looked at her for a moment, surprised that she was standing so close. “Cam, come on. You have to stop. We need to go.”
Cam hesitated. He knew he was supposed to go free the Humans from their cages, but he’d lost himself in the pleasure of burning the wolves. He took a sharp breath and pulled his fire back again, letting it sizzle out into nothing, dropping his magic for the moment.
The Need came then, raw and angry. He knew it would, and he pushed it away.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Key and Felin followed him as he barreled across the camp. Tents were burning to his right, sending thick plumes of smoke into the air. That wasn’t part of the plan, and he knew he’d pay for it later. Frew was going to be angry that he’d made such a mess and produced so much smoke. Every wolf within miles of the valley would know what was happening, and they’d come to investigate.
Cam cursed himself for losing control, but he bit back his self-loathing and pressed on.
The warriors marched forward and Cam caught a glimpse of wolves charging their line, only to slam against shields and get hacked and stabbed to death. The archers perched on top of the earthworks and fired arrows into the flame, aiming for the wolves that Cam had missed.
He tore himself from the fighting and concentrated on the pens just ahead.
16
The Humans inside the pens piled themselves against the large, heavy wooden gates. He saw women, children, young and old, even some men scattered about. They were all thin and filthy, and their smell almost made him retch. There were no buckets, no places for them to dispose of their filth, and so they were all stained with it, and the stink was overwhelming.
“Get it open,” Key said. “Gods, we have to get that gate open.”
Cam ran to the pen’s gate. It was made from fresh wood, light brown and with its bark still intact in a few places. Cam guessed they hadn’t spent much time on it. The gate was kept closed by a heavy log down its length, barring it shut. Cam grabbed the far end and gripped the heavy wood. He heaved, grunted, and nearly dropped it when Key and Felin joined him. Together, they managed to lift the log off and throw it onto the ground.
The people inside shoved the gate open. It swung with some difficulty, dragging along the ground, but the mass of people was desperate to get out. They shoved and shoved, until bodies began spilling into the camp.
Shouts of fighting echoed over the space as people panicked and ran. The tents were still on fire, the flames eating up the scattered tents faster than Cam had anticipated. The first few people out of the pen saw that fire, saw the wolves fighting the Humans, and scattered toward the earthworks.
“Wait!” Cam shouted. “No, don’t run!”
More people followed, streaming away from the camp. Some of the old and the women with young children stayed behind, lingering outside of the pens, leaning against the wood. But others took off for the woods, not looking back.
Cam, Key, and Felin tried to get some sense of order. More people were streaming out from the pens, fighting with each other, shoving and shouting. Groups of dirty, sickly people gathered, shouting as loud as their weak throats could manage, and even a shoving match began. Cam grabbed a thin man with a thick beard and pulled him away from another man on the ground. His clothes were hanging off his body and they were stained with mud and shit.
“Who’s in charge?” Cam asked.
“Nobody,” he croaked. “Fucking nobody.” He shoved Cam away, though his arms were so weak he could barely lift them, and staggered off toward the earthworks.
Cam helped the man on the ground up and leaned him against a pile of wooden boxes. He stood and looked around at the chaos. Key and Felin tried to get people together, but most of them ignored them and made for the woods.
“Stop!” he shouted over the din of the flames and the fighting. “You have to stop running. You won’t survive outside of here!”
Cam noticed some people listening. Men began to gather nearby in small groups. They got away from the pens as fast as they could, but they didn’t leave the ring of earthworks. Cam began grabbing people, telling them to stay, telling them to spread the word as more people spilled from inside the pens in a staggering, euphoric, terrified rush.
It was madness. And the fighting still continued. Cam watched a wolf throw itself at Theus and the shield wall, but they repelled the creature and speared it to death. They began to march forward again, killing anything they saw, and Cam turned back to the Humans only to find Miuri pushing her way through the crowd. Key and Felin continued to try and get some semblance of order and calm from the prisoners.
“Cam!” she called out.
He ran to join her, movi
ng people out of his way. Her blade was blood-slicked and she was sweating, but she seemed unharmed.
“Are the towers down?” he asked.
She nodded. “All four sentries are dead. I think some of the wolves ran out the back, and the rest are getting slaughtered down there.”
“What about the prisoners?”
“Saw just as many run,” she said, shaking her head. “I don’t know where they think they’re going. They all looked starved and crazed.”
“Go organize some of Frew’s men,” Cam said. “Try and get those fires out if you can. We’re going to need whatever supplies they have on hand to feed these people.”
Miuri nodded and hesitated. “You used magic,” she said.
“Couldn’t help it. I messed up, Miuri. But I’m fine, I didn’t use much.”
She touched his face then slipped off through the mass of people, jogging toward where the warriors fought. The Medlar men were still in their tight formation, but Frew and his warriors walked forward in a loose pile of bodies, no thought to how their shields fit together or how they could work as one unit. It didn’t matter, since the Medlar were taking the brunt of the attacks and fending off the wolves with ease. But still, Cam knew they were going to have to teach Frew’s men how to fight for real soon enough.
He turned back to the mass of people and hurried over to Key. She was speaking with a group of men standing near the pen’s entrance. They looked tired and angry, but they spoke in calm, measured voices. Cam pushed his way toward her through the gathering mass of people, some of them exuberant, some of them glassy-eyed and barely aware of their surroundings. He sheathed his sword as he joined Key, and stopped himself as he recognized the men in front of her.
It was Arter and his two twin sons, Janter and Vorn. Arter had always been a large man, with a thick beard, long hair, and dark weather-beaten skin. He was a former Elder of the Medlar village, but he’d been thrown out of camp when his stubborn beliefs began to impact the safety of everyone around him.