The Azureans

by R Gene Curtis

  “We didn’t stand a chance to escape his castle,” Somrusee says quietly, “but we made it here.”

  The ground suddenly becomes mesmerizing. No one says anything. We’re scared of Wynn, and we feel sick about Arujan. For the people who grew up here, they’re scared to leave the place they’ve lived their entire lives. They already see their culture and traditions crumbling to pieces.

  Tentatively, I touch Tran’s arm. I feel his fear. But I also feel hope. I touch Ler, and I feel his sadness. He’s lost Cadah and now his father. But, through the sadness, I can feel hope in him, too.

  And their hope gives me hope.

  We didn’t find the way to kill Wynn in the books, at least not yet. And, we can’t stay here to be tracked down by Arujan or his cronies. We need to go somewhere else, somewhere that will give us time, somewhere that will give us information to help us defeat Wynn.

  “I intend to fight Wynn as long as I can,” I say. “But Karl is right that I don’t know how. At least not yet. I think a place to start is to find out how Wynn defeated Togan. If we know how he escaped from the Western Hills, we might be able to figure out how he defeated two Azureans—his mother and his brother. The only place that might have the clues of how that happened is the Western Hills. I don’t know if we’ll find anything, but I think we should go there next. And, in case we find nothing there, we need to spend every other second thinking, reading, and learning about hemazury.”

  No one says anything. Finally, Karl nods. “It’s as good a plan as any. I can take you to the hills.”

  “I can’t think of anything better,” Dynd agrees.

  “Then we leave tomorrow.” I let the words hang out there. No one objects.

  “We’ll bring all the books that we can,” Somrusee says. “Karl and I will learn everything we can about hemazury on the way.”

  I turn to leave. I’m exhausted.

  I’m almost to the cave when another thought hits me, harder than blocking a shot on goal with my head ever hit me.

  “Oh no!” I sink to my knees and moan.

  “What now?” Tran asks.

  “Mara.”

  She’s in Keeper, and she’s not safe there with Arujan on the loose and us leaving the mountains.

  23 Instinct

  Karl

  Seconds after a baby wildebeest is born, it can run from predators, as if it has been training for the moment for months. Within hours of birth, chicks know what to eat and can feed themselves. There are so many precocial animals, the human need for nourishment and training seems to be the exception.

  But Lydia isn’t any ordinary human.

  You’d think an eighteen-year-old college freshman would need training on how to lead a group. But she is a natural; calm, cool, confident. The others trust her. I do too. Her desire to fight Wynn is more than just a noblesse oblige, it stems from a real desire to help real people.

  She might break at some point, but she hasn’t, and I’m not sure she will. I believe in her. She actually might defeat Wynn—she might exonerate me for leaving Buen to die to save myself.

  “This is the last part of the trail with a path to the valley.” Lydia points up a canyon. “If anyone wants to stay here, they won’t risk being caught by Arujan if he blocks the trail.”

  No one moves. Arujan is following us, we confirmed that days ago, but we’re staying with Lydia. She looks at each of us in turn, but none of us back out. What is she thinking? Does she have the same insecurities other girls have? Not likely.

  She jogs up the trail, and we follow. I don’t hear anyone groan or complain, not even Tran.

  Somrusee runs next to me. She catches my eye and smiles. I’m glad she can run—neither of us thought she’d ever run again after that stud was put in her ankle. If it weren’t for Lydia, she wouldn’t be running. That’s why we trust her. Lydia has helped each of us in a way we couldn’t have helped ourselves.

  After a few hours Keeper comes into view. I would describe it as another Watch. Little houses dot a mountainous landscape, connected by streets. People bustle about, gathering food. Lydia takes us through the forest on the fringes of the town. A few people see us, but no one stops us. Finally, Lydia turns and we walk briskly through the streets until we make it safely to a small structure. I’d call it a house, but all it needs is a push before it falls over. Lydia raps on the door. Somehow it stays vertical.

  “Who is it?” a timid voice says from inside.

  “Mara, it’s Lydia.”

  No response. Lydia loosens the latch, and a small baby toddles out.

  “Hi Jarra.” Lydia barely glances at him before going into the house.

  Tara hated kids. She once told me the only good thing about a baby was dressing them up in different outfits. Well, Jarra’s outfit isn’t much to look at, old rags stitched together, but the smile on his face brings a smile to mine. I bend down and pick up a stick. He takes it from my outstretched hand and bangs it on the ground. I smile, and he laughs. His dark hair sticks up in all directions. He’s beautiful.

  Lydia didn’t even see him.

  But Somrusee did, and she is watching me with a soft expression on her face. I give the stick to the baby and stand, dusting myself off awkwardly. Back in Wynn’s castle, she was supposed to have my children, but it wasn’t what we wanted. It’s something she wants now. Her eyes ask me if I want it, too. I shake my head, and she blushes and looks away.

  We have to get to the Western Mountains. We have to defeat Wynn.

  Her dark hair hangs loosely around her shoulders. She’s strong. Determined. Loyal. Maybe I could think about her like that. Someday.

  The door to the house swings open and my attention is immediately averted as Lydia exits, followed by a very pregnant young woman. She looks like she might be my age, though the weariness in her face makes her look older.

  “Mara, this is Karl and Somrusee. I think you know everyone else.”

  Mara nods silently.

  “I hope I’m stating the obvious,” Tran says. “She’s pregnant.”

  Lydia’s jaw tightens. “There are twin boys in there.”

  Tran smirks. “We’re fighting a supreme dictator, and you want to bring a pregnant lady along for the ride? Not to mention the other baby. Wouldn’t it be better to leave her here?”

  We all hear the question Tran is really asking. Is it possible to be kind and still win? If we help everyone, will we help no one in the end? He has a point. Maybe we should leave Mara here. In the valley we have Wynn, Goluken, Goluken’s sons, and who knows how many other adversaries?

  Lydia stands firm. “She’s coming with us.”

  “Next you’re going to tell me that our next task is to find Sharue.” Tran looks at Lydia with a glare that could cut stone.

  Lydia meets his eyes, and surprisingly, he can’t hold her gaze. “Funny you should mention it,” she says gruffly. “But that is our next stop. We’ll get Sharue and then we’ll get out of here.”

  “No!” Tran practically shouts. “It isn’t safe here.”

  “Who knows where the jail is?” Lydia asks calmly, ignoring his outburst.

  No one knows where the Keeper jail might be, and we can’t go wandering around town looking for it. Instead, we all wait inside Mara’s house for what seems like an hour while Dynd jogs from Mara’s house to apparently ask some old man who tells him where the jail is: right in the middle of the town.

  Going there will blow our cover, and could leave us vulnerable to ambush. We skirted around the main city to get to Mara, but we cannot do that to get to the jail.

  “We should leave Sharue,” Tran says again.

  “No,” Lydia answers, but she seems unsure this time.

  “Why not?” Dynd asks. His jog to the old man convinced him to agree with Tran.

  Lydia is struggling. Her eyes are wet, but her face is determined. She looks at her friends, but the only thing in their faces is doubt. Why isn’t she listening to them? I open my mouth to say something, but I shut it. I don’t
even know who this Sharue is, and Lydia doesn’t need another critic.

  “Dynd and Tran,” Lydia’s voice quivers. “Take Somrusee and Mara to the trailhead. Ler, Karl, and I will get Sharue. We’ll meet you in twenty-five minutes. If we don’t show up, leave us.”

  “You’re going to separate us?” Tran asks.

  “It’s too risky for us to stay together.” Her voice isn’t certain.

  “I have to stay with Karu,” Somrusee says, which is true.

  The discord disorients Lydia. She falters, and inexplicably looks at me. Her eyes are expectant—she thinks I’m going to help her out of this.

  I swallow and look around at the group. I’m tempted to take control and get us all out of this city as soon as possible, back to the path before Arujan arrives. But, doing that would completely undermine Lydia’s leadership. “Whatever we do, we need to act fast,” I say, swallowing hard.

  “I’m not leaving Sharue. But I don’t want us all going into town.” Lydia bites her lip and wipes at the tears that are still forming in her eyes.

  “Then send Mara, Dynd, and Tran away,” I say. “Somrusee, Ler, and I will come with you. Let’s go now.”

  My restating Lydia’s original plan prompts the group into motion. I don’t see who moves first, but it isn’t Lydia. She seems more uncertain by the minute.

  This feels wrong. The discord, the uncertainty, the hesitation. It feels like a recipe for disaster.

  Tran, Mara, and Dynd hurry away.

  “What way should we go?” Lydia asks Ler. She looks like a deer in the headlights. She doesn’t want to be making decisions, but she’s determined that we follow her plan.

  Ler shrugs. “The quickest way is through the center of town.”

  “Can you lead?”

  I feel in my tunic to make sure I still have my knives handy. I do, and I have my sword.

  Ler sets off at a brisk pace toward the city center. He isn’t smiling. I follow him, with Somrusee at my right hip. Lydia stays between us and Ler as we turn down a winding trail away from the edge of the city and toward the people.

  The farther down the trail we get, the faster Ler goes. Soon, I’m running to keep up with him. We weave back and forth, and I keep my head up, looking for threats as we round each corner. Houses fly by us, and then we round another corner and I see a flash of light. People start yelling and knives start flying.

  Knives.

  My training kicks in, and before I fully process the situation, I dive off the road into a gutter that shields me from the flying knives. I hit the ground hard, and the gravel digs into my hands as I stop my momentum and look back to the road.

  Both women are already hit. Lydia bleeds profusely from a wound in her back and another in her upper thigh. She’s fainted and fallen over backward. Somrusee lies face down in the dirt.

  If I knew any swear words in this language, I would say them all right now.

  Six men are running toward the women’s bodies. I don’t see Ler anywhere. The knives have stopped.

  I wait until the men are almost on top of the women, and then I jump out of the gutter, brandishing my sword. I don’t think about the temerity of taking on six men at once, I just do it.

  They yell and try to stop as I run at them. I kill the one closest to me before he gets control of his own momentum. No new knives fly—all the men left their hiding spot to take us on. Amateurs.

  Only two men turn to fight me. Frantic, I swing my sword, knocking away their sticks and knives while trying to look past them to find out what the other men are doing. I don’t want to get pushed back while the women are killed.

  Finally, a good whack on both of the men’s weapons gives me the half-second I need to look around them at the other three men. I breathe a sigh of relief when I see it—the other three men aren’t touching the women. One lies in a pool of his own blood in the street, and the other two are fighting Ler. Ler has blood running down his left arm, but otherwise he seems to be okay.

  Knowing the women are safe for the time being clears my head, and I turn back to the men I’m fighting. My attackers aren’t well trained. They look at each other, uncertain how to best use their numbers to their advantage. I don’t wait for them to figure it out. Going on the offensive, I swing my sword hard at the first man. He is so surprised, he doesn’t even respond in time to block it. The sword hits him with a sickening thud, sinking several inches deep into his skull. I avert my eyes and pull it out, wishing he had defended himself. Buen turned me into a killing machine.

  I don’t have time to dwell on it, though, as the other man jumps at me with his knife. I spin away, putting out my leg to trip him as he flies past. I close my eyes and let my training kick in, not watching this time as the sword sinks into the man’s body. Buen would lecture me about keeping my eyes in the game, but I can’t watch. Not this time.

  Ler has already taken down one of his attackers. I put my sword into the other man’s back and Ler finishes him off. I lean over and throw up, and then I run to Lydia.

  She lies backward on the ground, which is stained blue around her. Her wounds are not in critical parts of her body. If we can get her conscious, I’m sure she can fix herself up in no time.

  I leave her and turn to Somrusee. Her situation is much worse than Lydia’s. Blood runs down her chest from a knife she took just below her collarbone. Her eyes roll back into her head and she moans. She has another knife in her stomach.

  She’s going to die.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Ler says.

  I stare at Somrusee, barely able to think. “I don’t know how far we can take the women.”

  Will she die if I pick her up? Can I watch her die in my arms? This woman who saved my life so many times?

  “Do it!” Ler shouts. He’s already holding Lydia.

  I stare at him and shake my head. “I can’t,” I whisper. My muscles are slack. I don’t know if I could even pick up Mara’s baby.

  Somrusee groans and I stare at her limp body, at the blood seeping out of it.

  “Do it man! Now!” Ler shouts, and he starts to move away from me.

  I need to do it. Now. I push my arms out. The blood feels warm on my hands as I pick up Somrusee. She doesn’t weigh very much. She never did. She’s a wisp of a thing, this woman who loves me.

  Somrusee groans again as I pull her limp body next to me and stand up. Her blood flows onto me, and under the tunic, covering my skin. I look at where Lydia fell. Her blue blood has mixed with Ler’s blood, turning purple. Because red and blue make purple.

  Ler is running now, away from me.

  “Back to Mara’s,” I tell Somrusee. “We need to stop the bleeding.”

  She doesn’t move. She doesn’t speak. I’m losing her.

  I don’t know how I do it, but I start running. And I run. Somrusee’s blood runs down my arms and drips into the dust around my feet. She moans with each jostle, but I don’t slow down. I push my legs harder than I’ve ever pushed before, as if each step I take pushes her death away. I barely notice the tears running down my face.

  I get to Mara’s house before Ler. I kick the door off the hinges, and it flies across the room. I set Somrusee on the floor. She moans again, and coughs a cough that gurgles and makes my entire body tense. It won’t be much longer now. Barely able to see through tears, I pull my sword from its sheath and cut away her tunic. A second knife is lodged in her stomach.

  I throw up. Again.

  I turn back to her, pull the knife out of her collarbone, and cut her tights so I have cloth to wrap around the wound. The bleeding slows, but doesn’t stop.

  I look over at Ler. He’s put Lydia down and is staring at her uncertainly.

  “Well?” I ask.

  “I’m not sure what to do.”

  “Stop the bleeding.” What is he doing?

  “Yes, but, I can’t cut off the clothes of a princess.”

  I don’t believe this. “Hold this,” I practically yell.

  Ler hesitantly puts
his hand where mine is to apply pressure to Somrusee’s stomach wound. He looks at the ceiling, unable to even glance at her naked torso. I leap over them and jump down at Lydia’s side. I have to get Lydia conscious.

  “This doesn’t look good,” Ler says. He finally looked at her.

  “I know!” I shout. My friends are dying next to me, and I’m powerless to stop it. “Our only hope is to rouse Lydia.”

  I cut off Lydia’s tights and wrap them around the wound in her thigh. The gash is big, and it’s bleeding, but it isn’t life threatening. I cut off her tunic to expose the knife wound in her back. It didn’t penetrate the rib cage. I wrap it as well. She will be okay. Her body is strong, her muscles toned, and the wounds aren’t deep.

  Still, she isn’t awake.

  I look frantically around the room hoping to see anything that might save us. We can’t be here long or they’ll find us. We have to get Lydia awake and get out of here. A water pitcher sits on the counter in the corner of the room. I throw water on Lydia’s face, and red, blue, and purple blood runs down her chin. She gasps, and her eyes flit open.

  “Pick up Somrusee,” I tell Ler. “We have to get out of here and off this mountain. Now.”

  He picks up Somrusee, and I pick up Lydia. She’s heavier than Somrusee.

  Lydia moans and coughs.

  “Lydia,” I say. Her eyes flutter and then close.

  I swear at her in English. She can’t go back to sleep.

  “You’re badly wounded, but Somrusee is about to die.” I say it, and then I shout it. I maneuver her body so that her face is next to mine, and I yell it again. I jump over the threshold back out into the open and tear off toward the forest. Tears jump into my eyes and then fly into the sky as I run. I don’t hear anyone behind us, but I run anyway. I run, and I shout.

  “I hurt,” Lydia says weakly, and she leans her head on my shoulder.

  “You hurt!” I yell, “but Somrusee is dying!”