Insurgent of Rome

by Ken Farmer

  The girl suddenly realized the meaning, looking down with a stricken face. She knew that Melglos was not afraid of water - she had seen him enter it to hold the rope as they were dragged from the island of the pirates, but as to being able to swim... Alas, his skills were little better than a stone, cast into the river.

  "Aye, and I doubt that we could ask for passage from the guards at the bridges." He looked down at his midriff with a wry expression. "I do not have the look of an innocent wishing to enter the city for a night of cups and wenching."

  Indeed, he did not. The wrappings of the girl had no doubt stanched the flow of blood substantially, but the white cloth was now almost completely dyed to a deep red.

  "We will find another place to plan. If even a scullery-maid passes below, she cannot miss the marking of a foul deed. Go below and stand watch at the entry." He walked to the senseless man, stooping to pull him from the floor, then with a painful grunt, allowed the limp figure to fall over a shoulder. Carefully, he began the journey to down the steps that led down the empty tower. There was little doubt that the loss of blood was giving much weakening to his sinews as his feet stepped onto the stones at the bottom. The girl was carefully peering around the edge of the entryway as he asked, "Any in view?"

  "Nay. A servant appeared, but far away."

  "Let us move around the building to find an alley without such a distance of vision. Take his spear. It may have use, later."

  "Should you not rest for a bit?" The body water was pouring from his face and arms, even his torso to appear below the tunic as red rivulets down his legs.

  "Nay. I would not be able to lift him from the ground again. Go. I will follow. Find us a hole to hide."

  The girl quickly moved to cross the street to a narrow alley between two buildings. There, she turned to look both ways down the street, then gave a hurried wave for the Thracian to follow. Melglos paid little attention to their path, trying to maintain his balance with his load and not trip on stones and cracks. At each intersection of building or alley or street, Pontika carefully looked to make sure that no one was in view - unlikely in this far end of the deserted island - then back at the man and his burden. Finally, she knew that Melglos was coming to the end of his strength, and selected a storage shed, adjoining the back of some larger and more substantial edifice. Stopping to point her decision, her comrade turned into the gloom of the low lean-to, dropping to his knees to allow his burden to fall to the ground.

  She scrabbled around the detritus of the shack, finding a small bowl that seemed to be whole and uncracked. Before Melglos gave notice, she had vanished.

  He had fallen asleep, apparently, wakening only to the gentle shaking of the girl. "I have brought water to clean your wounds."

  Blinking for the moment, he asked, "From where?"

  She tilted her head toward the back wall of the building. "The river. It is only a hundred strides away." Carefully she unwrapped the red-soddened rag, then pulled his equally stained tunic over his head. With his garb wetted and in a ball, she began to carefully cleanse the ugly gash to the point that some determination could be made of its seriousness. "You have lost much of your being, but the flow has stopped." She stood and walked to the unconscious man, pulling her little dagger, then cutting the laces of the leather armor to let it fall away, then slitting the under-tunic from neck to hem. The garment was quickly ripped to lengths that allowed her to again cover the wounds of the man.

  "One hopes that you do not wish to carry that putrid apóvrasma any further. It will do you ill to tear the gash open again."

  He smiled wanly. "I will be fortunate to walk to the entry to empty my water, thus your fears are unfounded." He leaned back against the wood of the wall, then said, "But, you must needs swim into the city after darkfall. There is no value in both of us being found by the guards, and with one of their own laying at our feet."

  "Might I have some coins from your purse?" Nodding, and satisfied that the girl was agreeing on his thoughts, he nodded, reaching to pick up his belt. Drawing the sword from the scabbard, he lay it beside him, then untied the purse to hand to the korí.

  She pulled some metal rounds from the small bag, placing them into her own, then said, "Do not leave this shed, else I will not be able to find you again."

  The shook his head vigorously. "Nay! If the Kapetánios finds it important to attempt to gain his crewman again, tell him of my place, but yourself - stay at the ship." She just smiled and nodded, turning toward the entrance, but stopping as he called, "You cannot leave during the light of day. The night will arrive in a few hours and with it, ease of movement without being seen."

  She grinned at her friend. "A man who could be mistaken for a mountain should not give advice to a mere street-rat on the manner of lurking in the alleys of her own city." Without waiting for an answer - or a command - she vanished from the entrance of the shed.

  The day passed slowly with him leaning against the wall and drowsing. He had moved to be able to lay a leg across the unconscious body, as to be wakened should the man begin to clear his senses. He had no doubt of his fate, should he be found in deep slumber when the guardsman awakened. Taking the red-soaked strip that had earlier been wrapped around his torso to hold the protecting cloths, he tied the ankles of the man - crossly - with as many turns as the strip would make, completing it with a tightly cinched knot.

  The pain of his rib-gash was considerable, but was not something that was unfamiliar to a man who had engaged in strife from the day that he had run away to make his own life. And the weakness he knew was from the loss of blood before the natural stanching had taken hold - again, not a thing with which he was unacquainted.

  Finally, late in the afternoon, only a pair of hours before the set of the sun, the man stirred with a shake of his head - and action that was obviously and instantly regretted. Melglos had twice poured a portion of the water from the jug over the head of the man, but it had had no effect - or else, the liquid had taken long to cause a response. Now the question would be if the man was still whole, or addled beyond reason - something the Thracian had seen many times with severe blows to the head. With the purloined spear at the ready, he waited for the man to find his wakefulness.

  It took a considerable time, the man no doubt regretting that he had woken from his senseless slumber, but finally managing to open and allow his eyes to begin giving him his place. A hand went to explore the back of his head - an action also immediately regretted. The blows from Pontika had not been with the strength of a man, but even so, they had not been as a shepherd-tap, given to move a recalcitrant ewe.

  The guardsman was naked of all but his sandals, the leathers having been cut away to allow for the Korí to obtain the tunic for use in the ministration of her friend. The need had been necessary, but the effects were goodsome, also - at least for the Thracian. A unclothed man is helpless, both in actual ability and in his own thoughts.

  As the man seemed to gather his senses, Melglos said - from the other side of a leveled blade - "You have not followed your mate to the Elysian Fields only because of my need to discover why myself and my friend were accosted without cause. Your time to convince me not to continue your journey is short." The eyes of the guardsman were having trouble in holding their gaze, but there was no doubt that any unclarity was not sufficient to mistake the spearpoint only a handspan from his throat. "You were ordered to follow us."

  It was not posed as a question, but merely as a gambit to open the conversation. The man swallowed, but still did not speak, attempting to rise to a sitting position, but ceasing his efforts at the sudden discovery of his tied ankles. "Your time to speak is growing shorter." The spearpoint halved the distance from point to throat. "If you are addled, then your use is nothing to myself or your Commander."

  The voice was a croak, but the man finally managed a shake of his head - instantly stopped with a wince - then, "The Dioikitís requires all come to the city to be watched... It is a requirement of the King."


  Aye. Melglos could believe that. The Commander of any security unit who did not wish to know every detail of strangers had yet to be born of woman. But... "Nay. Such orders would have had you waiting for us to depart the tower. Yet, you accosted us with violence. Mayhap you and your partner had desire of our purses, to leave us both destitute and lifeless and unlikely to be discovered until long after the island is taken for occupancy by the Court."

  "Nay! Nay! We are not slayers for gain." His eyes could now move without pain, but tended to look at the point just below his chin. "Any actions were for orders. The Dioikitís wanted your reason to come to a deserted Court."

  "And your leader takes it upon himself to give question to men who have the auspices of the King himself." Melglos pursed his lips, nodding to himself as if accepting the fact. It was an act, of course. Then he continued, "My young companion is as a fish in water, able to swim the river as you and I could walk to the meal-tables." Even in his slowing clearing daze of thoughts, the man looked blankly at the Thracian, no doubt in wonder at the strange statement. "Even now she is in hurry to gain assistance for myself."

  "She..." The man was still confused. "The boy, is your meaning."

  Melglos smiled. "Aye, but not the boy that gave hinder to Dionysophanes, himself." Melglos saw the barely noticeable widening of eyes at the mention of the powerful name. But, he continued, "He has been transformed into a Korí through some magical means, known only to herself. But, such does not concern us. Rather of more importance is the fact that the Queen Mother has taken like to the youngster, even to giving oath of returning her rightful belongings that were brutally ripped from her family by Dionysophanes."

  "I am a mere guard in the ranks. You cannot believe that I have association with a man of such stature."

  "Indeed. You would not, but I have little doubt of your knowledge of the orders given by the merchant to your commander, the Dioikitís. When the Korí returns with assistance, I will suggest that you be saved from this deserted island with myself, and given to the mercies of the Queen Mother to gain question. I understand that she employs men who have learned the fine arts of gaining wanted information." The widened eyes gave some show that the idea did not meet with full agreement by the guard. "Actually, such questioning might be preferable to that of being queried by my Kapetánios. He is Roman, as you may know, and such have barbaric ways in handling enemies that give reason for wrath, and indeed this man from afar has given oath that any who are in consort with Dionysophanes will be nailed to the closest wall. Nay! Do not speak as yet. Allow me to offer a... bargain, it may be called. Speak of your knowledge and fully, and when I leave with my friends, you will be left to find your way back to the unit, to give whatever tale you wish." The spear moved even closer. "But... know that I know much of what you have to say and the single dropping of a false word will cause someone to eventually find your shriveled carcass pinned by the throat to yon wall."

  The night began to fall and with it the sudden peril of being alone in the dark with a foe that could not be seen. Melglos had just made decision to move both himself and the prisoner out of the shed and into the open where at least a shadow of the man could be seen, but suddenly his ears gave warning of some sound...

  With relief he saw the small form of the Korí outlined in the entrance. Despite his vexation at the girl returning to peril, rather than seeking refuge with the crew of the ship in Persidium, he was gratified to see her. He waited for her to enter, but she stood at the entrance for some reason... "Melglos?"

  Realizing that the inside of the shed was nothing but darkness to the girl, he answered, "Aye, Korí. Mayhap you were expecting the Chamberlain of the King?" With a stern tone that he did not feel, he continued, "And why have you returned, rather than moving your feet for Persidium as I commanded?"

  Ignoring the jape and the censure, she asked, "The guardsman?"

  "Aye. He is here in the darkness with myself. We have been regaling each other with tales of our adventures."

  There was a long pause, then she said with some haste. "Come. We must make for the river to the west. There is a flatboat that will carry us across. We can be in Alexandretta before the sun rises and take ship from this benighted land."

  "Nay, little one. I would not make the first hour of such a journey..."

  "Please, Melgos. I have a... a litter for your use. Come and hurry!"

  The big Thracian rose, taking his belt and sword in one hand, and using the spear and the other as a walking stick. At the entrance to the shed, he turned and said into the darkness. "I keep my oath to yourself and give you your life. You may return to give any tale you wish, but I might suggest that the discussion between us be avoided. Mayhap, to your Dioikitís, you were struck from behind when in pass of a doorway. He will not learn other from us."

  He followed the girl in the gloom, as she weaved and wove through the narrow alleys and pathways of the island. Melglos could easily see from the thin crescent of the moon that their journey was more north than west, but said nothing. Even so, they could not walk far in any direction without encountering water. Finally, she stopped and turned, to say. "The passage is low ahead. Do not strike your head on the overhang. Give me your belt and take my hand." Now guided, he crouched and followed slowly, trying not to give stretch to his gash. "Hold a moment."

  It was total darkness, but he could hear the girl scrabbling for something, making a clink and rasping noise. Suddenly, almost as the flare of an overstoked cookstove, there was a rain of sparks, and then a small flame. In a moment a small oil lamp had been ignited and he could see that the room was tiny, less than half his length in height, and barely longer in the other directions than himself. "There is a mat. Sit or lay before you topple onto me."

  Gratefully, he lowered himself to the ragged mat - thick and soft - leaning back against the stones of the wall. She set a jug and cup on the floor in his reach, then pulled a loaf of bread from a bag - and olives, onions and such.

  "I have seen little of a boat to land us on the western shore and the road to Alexandretta. Nor a soft litter for my comfort."

  The girl did not respond to the jape as such, but said, "Since you let the guardsman live, it did not seem wise to tell him that we would be hiding on the island, still."

  "Do not take my ill-chosen words as anything but a jest to give some confidence to myself. Now..." He took a bite of the bread, suddenly realizing that he was famished. "As you seemed to have taken command of our little unit, what are your orders?"

  She waved at the few bags sitting on the floor, and the other jug. "There is food and drink to sustain you for several days, if you are sparing of it."

  "Where are we? How did you find this rodent-hole?"

  "A crumbled shed behind a stable. I searched for a place before crossing the river."

  "You swam in the light of day? You could have been spitted even as you emerged."

  She wrinkled her nose at him while emptying the bags and setting foodstuffs on the empty leathers. "Does a sailor look at the sea? Or a guard at what he is supposed to be guarding? Either bridge is a half a thousand strides from where I entered the river. What man is standing with such intentness to see a small head bobbing in the water? I have little doubt but that they are squatting together playing bones beside their gates. There was not even a sentry to be seen when I stood on the far bank." Finally, she rose to her feet. "After, I began to procure this foodstuff, the lamp and mat from a merchant, giving that my Patéras was ill and in need of his daughter to make the purchases. Then I found a fisherman who agreed to carry myself and my load back to the island, after darkfall."

  "Now. Your mission is to lay quietly and let your blood return, while I go to find assistance."

  "Nay. You must not try to find the Kapetánios and our mates. If we were accosted, then the chance is goodsome that they have been marked also."

  She smiled as she shook her head. "Nay. I will not. I will make for Persidium to meet with any of our friends. Or wait for Kapetánios
Decimus to touch shore in his little boat."

  "You must not walk the road as a Korí."

  "In the darkness of the night, no one will see me, and even if were I a bloated doxie from a port brothel, I could not be measured as such." She knelt and kissed the man on the forehead. "I will close the entrance with the moldy hay from the stable. And I say again, your task is to lay quietly and rest."