Through the Mirrah

by K C Otenti

  “Let’s hold off on that.” Sterling put up a hand, as if that would stop anyone. “Aideen brought the idol back. The Trappers have that much less power because of her.”

  “But at what cost?”

  “Ash trained us all! We are his army.”

  “How can we go on without the Ostrich to guide us? To give us strength?”

  “What will we do now?”

  Fear hung thick in the air, waiting to be ignited by the spark of an overheated temper.

  “You forget,” Sterling cried out. “Ash was not prophesied to lead us in this war, nor was the Ostrich. Gideon still lives, as does Aideen. There is still hope.”

  “The Prophesied One would never put the Ostrich in danger!”

  “She’s no leader!”

  Gideon jumped onto the table next to Sterling. “Silence!”

  The crowd quieted.

  “Aideen, like me, came here unaware of what was in store for her. She has evaded Trappers and Turkeys, escaped Jay Ridge twice, and killed a Trapper. She rescued Sterling.” Gideon motioned to the man next to him. “When he was taken to Crowned Eagle Mountain. She is not of this world, but she has risked her life repeatedly to help you.

  “I never met the Ostrich,” Gideon continued. “But I am certain she would only put herself in danger if there was something of the utmost importance at stake.”

  Sterling nodded. The crowd murmured.

  Maybe Gideon is the Prophesied One after all. The Refuse seemed open to his leadership.

  “It’s late,” Sterling said. “I suggest we all try to sleep. We will regroup in the morning and determine how to proceed.”

  The Refuse filed out of the dining hall. Some wept, and some were in silent shock. Aideen caught a few more dirty looks, but there were no more threats. She’d take it.

  “What should we do with the idol?” Gideon asked.

  “Keep it with you. We need to guard it until we have a plan.”

  Gideon nodded. He looked at Aideen, not quite making eye contact. “It’s not your fault.”

  “Thank you.”

  Gideon left, hugging the idol to his chest.

  Aideen sat on the long bench spanning the length of the table Sterling and Gideon had just been standing on. Sterling sat down next to her.

  “I know I’m not to blame,” Aideen said. “But that doesn’t make it any easier.”

  “I know.”

  “Jonathan, Shay, Ash, the Ostrich . . . Things could have gone different if I hadn’t been here.”

  “Yes. They could have gone worse.”

  “I know.” Aideen shuffled her feet. “You were closer to them than I was. How are you handling it so well?”

  “I remind myself that this isn’t an ending.” Sterling wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “They may no longer be with us, but we haven’t lost them. This is a new beginning, a new fight, a new chance to stand up for what we believe in.”

  “So, what do we do now? The only way this war ends and the people of D’Nal Harrim can truly be free is to defeat the Trappers, once and for all. And we can’t survive another full-on attack. There aren’t enough of us.”

  “What would you suggest?”

  “Me? How would I know?”

  “You have as much war experience as Gideon does. And more experience with the Trappers. You’re in as good a position as any to suggest a plan of action.”

  Aideen thought, but her brain kept replaying recent events. She wiped a tear from her eye.

  “I don’t know.”

  “You’ll feel better after some rest.” Sterling rubbed her shoulder and stood. “Get some sleep. I’ll have someone bring gojoos to you in your rooms.”

  THE NEXT MORNING, AIDEEN and Sterling ate breakfast in the dining hall. Aideen’s thoughts wandered to the Refuse’s comments of the night before, and she shook her head.

  If I could just come up with a plan, maybe they could forgive me.

  “Jimmy wants the idol back,” Aideen said between bites of gojoos. Her appetite still wasn’t quite normal, but the nausea was finally subsiding.

  Sterling grunted in agreement, his mouth full of hashed kahsihvee, which looked and tasted like the crispy hash browns Aideen was used to.

  “We could use it as bait. Set a trap.”

  “What sort of trap?” Sterling sounded doubtful.

  Aideen sighed. “I haven’t figured that part out yet.”

  Sterling looked at his plate before taking another bite of food.

  “If we told him we’d give it back,” Aideen continued, “and ambushed him when he arrived . . . But he’d expect that. He’d bring his army.”

  “We need to take his army out of the picture.”

  “Yeah.” Aideen shoveled more food into her mouth. “How?”

  They looked at each other, mulling over the question as they chewed their breakfast.

  Gideon approached the table from the buffet line at the back of the dining hall and plopped his tray down next to Aideen’s.

  “I assume you both slept as lousy as I did.” He sat, looking at Sterling.

  Aideen and Sterling nodded.

  “How do we deal with the Trapper army?” Aideen asked Gideon.

  “W- What do you mean?” He fumbled with his silverware, dropping his fork into his kahsihvee.

  “I mean, we can lure Jimmy into an ambush with the idol, but how do we keep him from bringing his army with him?”

  Gideon frowned as he wiped his fork with a napkin and cut his Turkey bacon into pieces. “Is there something else we can lure the army with?”

  They finished their breakfast in silence, lacking an answer for the outstanding question.

  “I’ll think of something.” Gideon stood. “They look up to me now. They’ll expect me to lead them, without Ash. The prophecy will hold true.” He gathered their trays, making brief eye contact with Aideen, and returned to the back of the room.

  Aideen was not comforted by the thought. Judging by Sterling’s expression, neither was he. Aideen had already recognized the change in Gideon’s behavior.

  “He’s regained some confidence,” she said.

  “Confidence is good,” Sterling said. “Arrogance is dangerous.”

  “You think it’s arrogance?”

  “There’s a fine line.”

  “What do we do? If we make any mistakes, we will lose more people to this war.”

  “Even if we do things right,” Sterling wiped his mouth with a napkin and tossed it onto his empty plate. “We’ll lose more people before the war is over.”

  “Then what’s the point?”

  “Things will only get worse for us if we don’t check the power and growth of the Trappers now.”

  “So, what do we do?” Aideen asked.

  Jesse ran into the dining hall.

  “Trappers are coming,” he cried. “At least a hundred.”

  Gideon returned to Aideen and Sterling as Jesse made his way over. Rio had been at another table and joined them.

  “Any sign of the others?” Gideon asked. “From the East?”

  “They’re on their way.”

  “Until they arrive, there’s nothing to do at this point but defend the Bo and the idol,” Sterling said. “Gideon, do you still have it?”

  Gideon pulled it from his waistband.

  “Give it to Aideen. She’ll keep it safe.”

  Gideon handed it over, fingers brushing Aideen’s palm.

  “How will we keep her safe?” Jesse asked.

  “Rio,” Gideon said. “Take three others to guard Aideen. She’ll take shelter with the idol in the gym.”

  “That’s ridiculous.” Aideen felt a little hurt that Gideon wouldn’t let her help. “You need us all to fight.”

  “We need someone to keep the idol safe and out of the Trappers’ hands.” Sterling held her hand. “Rio’s an extra obstacle for them to get through if they make it past the rest of us. But we need someone with eyes on the idol. If we hide it somewhere, and the Trappers get pas
t our defenses . . .”

  “. . . They could use it on us before we even realize it’s gone,” Aideen finished. She understood, but she didn’t like it. She looked at Gideon. “What are you going to do?”

  “If we split into separate armies and attack from different sides, we may be able to pare down their numbers some,” he said.

  “We have fewer people, so you want to separate us further?” she asked. “Is that a good idea?”

  “As long as we attack before they’re ready for us, they won’t be prepared to defend their flanks.” Gideon shoved his hands in his pockets and looked from Aideen to the floor and back. “We’ll wait for them to approach the Bo, so they’ll be expecting us to hit them head-on. It could be the advantage we need, but we must hurry. We don’t want them to see what we’re planning.”

  “Plus,” Sterling said. “If reinforcements are close, it’ll be another surprise for the Trappers.”

  Gideon called those still in the dining hall to join him in the foyer where he could assign the troops. Aideen worried their plan wouldn’t make up for the vast difference in head counts. Cleverness could only get you so far against an army that outnumbered yours three to one.

  “I’ll bring my men to the back door,” Rio said to Aideen. “Meet us there, and we’ll escort you to the gym.”

  Sterling waited for the others to leave the room before turning to Aideen.

  “You’ll be okay.” He put his hand on Aideen’s shoulder. “And this will all work out. You’ll see.”

  Aideen shook her head.

  “There are too few of us to beat an army that size. How can you still have so much faith in the prophecy?”

  Sterling’s hand dropped.

  “What good is not having faith?” He turned to leave.

  “Wait.”

  Sterling turned back to her. She turned the idol over in her hands.

  “Something wrong?” He asked.

  “I don’t want to separate them.”

  “You have to separate them. Even in the right environment, the talon will only grow if it’s removed from the casing.”

  “What if it’s gotten attached to the casing?”

  “They’re not attached.” Sterling took the idol from her and popped it open, removing the talon. “The talon can leave whenever it wants.”

  He handed it to her. She studied it, then handed it back.

  “I don’t think it wants to leave.”

  She watched Sterling’s hands as he secured the talon within the casing. “The talon is destined for greater things.”

  “Still . . .”

  Sterling placed the idol in her hands and wrapped her fingers around it. “I need to go. Gideon is waiting.”

  Aideen nodded, lips tight.

  “Good luck,” Sterling said.

  “I thought you knew I’d be okay.”

  “I do.” He smiled. “But what harm would a little extra luck do?”

  Aideen smiled back and kissed him on the cheek.

  “That’s all I get? What if I don’t make it back alive?”

  “Then you should keep some of that luck for yourself.”

  “Now, how are you going to feel if those are your last words to me?”

  “Are you trying to make me nervous again?”

  “No, I’m trying to get you to say something nice to me.”

  Aideen looked at Sterling. “Your hair looks good today.”

  Sterling laughed. “I guess that’ll do.”

  Aideen grabbed him and kissed him. “Come back alive.”

  AIDEEN WAITED AT THE BACK door of the main building for Rio and his chosen guardians of the idol.

  Guardians of the idol guardian, more accurately.

  Rio rushed down the hall with three men close on his heels.

  “They’ve reached the front lawns. We must hurry. I’m sure they’ll have some Trappers break off and attack from behind. We can’t let them see us hiding you.”

  The five of them raced out the back to the smaller building that housed the gym and training equipment.

  “Rio, the targets,” one man said. “They could provide some cover.”

  “Move them into position.”

  Two of the men broke off to reposition the targets. Rio led Aideen and the third man into the gym.

  “Keep the lights off,” Rio said. “We don’t want to give away that anyone’s in here. Stay away from the windows. Del, station yourself outside the back door. Use one of those dummies for cover. If Trappers attack, bang on the door so Aideen knows there’s company.”

  “What about you?” Aideen asked Rio.

  “I’ll be out front with the others. If we’re overtaken, I’ll whistle. Assuming you haven’t received the sign from Del, go out the back and run. There’s another village a few miles to the east. Find Ellen and tell her I sent you. She’ll keep you safe.”

  “And if both you and Del have signaled me?”

  “I hope you fight as well as you run.” Rio pointed to a caged area. “There are bows, arrows, and swords in there. Take whatever you think you can use. Be ready.”

  Aideen nodded. As Del and Rio left to take their positions, Aideen walked to the cage.

  Arrows or swords? Aideen had participated in archery in gym class one year, but it wasn’t exactly combat archery. Arrows assume there’ll be a distance between my attacker and me. That won’t be the case if they’ve gotten past Rio and the others.

  She picked up a few swords that all felt too heavy for her to swing with any precision until she found one that was thinner than the others. Not a fencing epee (judging by photos she’d seen), but manageable, she hoped.

  Idol in one hand and sword in the other, she looked for a place to wait. The wall to the left of the front door was covered in hand and footholds.

  A climbing wall. I could see what’s going on outside through the transom from higher up.

  She would have to leave the sword and idol on the ground, but if she could see what was going on, she’d know when to return to them.

  As she got into position, half a dozen Trappers came into view between the main building and the front of the gym. Rio and the others were nowhere in sight. Aideen knew they were hiding behind the archery targets, but she hoped they were planning on attacking before they got to the door.

  As the thought formed, the two men who had arranged the targets sprung from their hiding spots. Four of the Trappers had swords, giving Aideen’s protectors a fighting chance. But two had guns. The Refuse took out two of the Trappers before getting shot down.

  Aideen hoped Del heard the shots and took cover, because two of the remaining Trappers split to either side, likely to circle around back. The two who stayed—one of whom had a gun—started for the door. Rio bounded out and slit the throat of the Trapper with the sword. He whistled to warn Aideen as the Trapper with the gun turned and aimed. Rio’s whistle died as a bullet tore open his throat.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Aideen dropped to the ground, scooping up the idol in her left hand and gripping the sword with her right. She ducked behind some foam mats that hid her from whoever came in the front. If the Trappers who went around back made it past Del first, though, they’d see her at once.

  The front door opened and Aideen crouched, peering around the side of the mats. First into the gym was the Trapper’s gun, pointed at chest level. The Trapper followed it in, swept the firearm in an arc across the dark room, and started toward the obvious hiding place. Aideen wondered how long to wait before jumping out when Del’s signal came from the back of the room.

  The Trapper pointed his gun at the back door and crept toward it. Aideen watched as he passed her.

  I’ve got one shot to surprise him, so I need to make it count.

  She leaped from her cover, sword raised. She ran at the Trapper and swung the sword as he turned. Her aim was off, but she knocked the gun from the Trapper’s hand. He moved as if to go after the gun, then stopped himself. He looked at Aideen’s left hand and dove towa
rd her instead. The idol fell out of her grasp, and they both scrambled for it.

  The Trapper was faster, and he jumped back, idol pointed at her. Aideen trained her sword on him and waited for his next move. She expected he’d run, treasure in hand, so she was slow in moving out of the way when he ran at her instead. The sharp edge of the idol tore her shirt as she edged out of the way just in time.

  “You have the idol. Why not run?” she asked.

  “The idol is the only thing that can kill the Prophesied One. Kill the One, and we are saved.” The Trapper pounced at her again, but she was ready. She knocked his hand away with her thin sword, forgetting how sharp it was. The hand startled her as it flew, still clutching the idol.

  The Trapper hugged his truncated arm to his chest and scrambled after his hand. Again—to Aideen’s surprise—he was more focused on the idol. He grabbed it and stood facing Aideen, pointing the idol at her heart.

  “You’re crazy,” Aideen said.

  The Trapper screamed as he ran at her. She swung the sword and the Trapper fell, blood pouring from his nearly severed neck.

  A roar erupted from outside the gym, followed by stampeding footsteps. Aideen peered toward the front door and saw a wave of people she didn’t recognize running past the gym, toward the front lawns of the Bo.

  Our friends to the East?

  She retrieved the idol and turned toward the back door. No one had come through. She wasn’t sure whether that was a good sign or a bad one. Was Del dead? Had he taken the other Trappers with him? She assumed that had the Trappers defeated Del, they would have entered the gym. She scurried to the door and cracked it open. Del crouched beside the dummy he had brought outside to use as cover.

  “Del?” Aideen whispered.

  He turned to reveal he was missing part of his jaw. Blood poured down his neck and shirt.

  “Oh my god!” Aideen looked around frantically for something to stop the bleeding.

  “Trah-huh. Guh. Shah ee.” He pointed to two bodies Aideen hadn’t noticed, then to his face.

  “Shh.” Aideen hurried to one body and tore off a piece of its shirt. She pressed the cloth against Del’s face. “Let’s go back to the main building. Julie can help you.”