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DKP 5-22 A truth and a viper
🕑 Added 2020-06-26 14:59:46 +0000 UTC
“Ow!” Gedris cried as the lash struck her back leg.
“You are stepping too wide,” Ayawa scolded as she stood nearby with a thin tree branch in her arm.
“You said I need to brace myself for a block,” Gedris argued.
“Brace yourself, not root to the spot,” Ayawa remarked. “We have gone over this before! You will not be able to get your feet under you in time with so wide a stance.”
Gedris sighed and looked across to her sparring partner. Tavis tipped his hat and raised his swords again, and the battle started over. Tavis had the advantage of reach, but Gedris was only meant to block and parry in this battle. That was easily accomplished with her knives, and for a brief moment, she put up a good fight. Then she stumbled on a form, and Tavis was inside her reach, the tip of his sword at her chest.
“OW!” she cried again as Ayawa swatted her rear.
“What form were you trying to take?” Ayawa demanded.
“I was going to go with a cross guard, but I decided a back sweep was better,” Gedris admitted.
“You can't change your mind in the middle of a duel,” Ayawa scolded. “You pick the right move, or you step out of the way. There is never enough time to change and react.”
“But how do I know what the right move is until I see what he is doing?” Gedris asked.
“That comes with time and practice,” Ayawa said. “You will soon be able to read the stance of a fighter and know that the next attack is coming high, or low, or is a feint. You will also know what to do when you can’t read the attack, or your enemy knows how to misdirect you.”
“Then why are you lashing me?”
“Because I enjoy it,” Ayawa said and lashed her again.
Gedris frowned as Tavis struggled to hold in a smile. The people who were watching offered a few laughs as Gedris took her feet, and the battle started over. Ayawa watched with pride as the woman worked diligently to learn how to fight with knives. She was impressed with Gedris's dedication despite her reckless nature. If Ayawa could manage to keep the fool girl alive long enough, she might make a decent fighter.
“Your rokki is improving,” Two Crows said as he walked up.
“She is putting her heart into the training,” Ayawa agreed.
“It is uncommon for a northerner to be trained in our fighting styles,” he added as he stepped up beside Ayawa.
Ayawa glanced at him narrow eyes reading the implication in his words. The fighting style Ayawa was teaching Gedris was considered sacred and a long tradition of her people. The council of elders would have forbidden her to teach it, and the woman’s order would have punished her for the very idea.
“Your accusations are thinly veiled,” Ayawa said. “You know I don’t care what they think.”
“We all know you don’t care what we think,” He folded his broad arms over his chest as he watched the duel and nodded. “You have a price on your head in many tribes. What you did to their wise women is not easily forgotten.”
“They did that to themselves,” Ayawa retorted. “They should have let me go.”
Two Crows didn't move a muscle, his face looking firm as the stone of the earth. He waited until Gedirs finished blocking an attack before continuing.
“It surprised many that you chose to follow him,” he said, his eyes falling on Tavis. “It was not your place to leave.”
“My place is where I decide it is, and I don't need your counsel on the matter,” Ayawa growled. “I made my decisions, and I have never regretted it.”
“Not even when you had to kill to keep your freedom?”
She glared at him now, her eyes narrow and her jaw firmly set. “They chose that too,” she said. “I respect our traditions, but I knew where my heart lay. They refused to let me have my happiness and decided to spill his blood to keep it from me.”
“And you spilled theirs instead,” he replied.
“Is this why you're here?” Ayawa asked. “Come to hunt me down and burden me with guilt?”
“I came to make a horse trade,” he said.
“Oh, don't hide behind that. You came into the northlands to make a trade and decided to carry an artifact that would have special meaning to me? You know as well as I do that those knives would allow me to go back. Some would still balk, but none would be able to deny me. You may have been making a horse trade, but you were hoping to find me in the process. Do you think I don't realize that many of your warriors are scouts? You were using them to scour for me and pick up my trail.”
“It would appear my accusations are not the only things that are thinly veiled,” he replied, his face still showing no emotion. “I should have expected as much from the one who turned the tables on our best hunters.”
“Why are you looking for me? Are you after a bounty? Are you looking for revenge?”
He finally glanced her way, his eyes showing compassion as he let out a deep sigh. “I wanted to know why you left and why you took my bow with you.”
Ayawa’s jaw fell open as she looked at the giant man and began to shake her head.
“You? You were that scrawny chieftains son?”
“I am told I matured late for my age,” Two Crows said. “I have also been hardened by the fire your leaving left in its wake.”
“Your name wasn’t Two Crows,” Ayawa balked.
“No, I changed it when I had to change myself. I grew into a new man and took a new name in honor of my fallen sisters, Sahishi and Lorhassi.”
“Sahishis and Lorhassi,” Ayawa said with a nod as she remembered the two women known as the tribe's greatest hunters. Two women who tracked her down cornered her and were subsequently killed. They always traveled together and were known as the two crows.
“I was the one who sent them after you. I wanted a chance to ask you why you ran away.”
“I had no choice,” Ayawa said. “You should have let me go.”
“I loved you,” he said, his face still hard as rock. “But you loved him.”
Ayawa looked back to Tavis and nodded her head. “Why am I not allowed to love who I want?” Ayawa asked. “Why must I love who the crones say I must love?”
“They do that to make sure the strongest of us do not waste our blood. You are the strongest woman our people have seen in many years. They saw hope in you, and could not bear to see you waste that strength on a northern man.”
“You can't demand people love one another,” Ayawa said. “I am sorry I did not love you.”
Two Crows nodded his head. “And I am sorry I matured so late. I sometimes wonder if you had seen me as I am now, would you have chosen differently.”
“I doubt it would have made any difference. I already knew Tavis before they introduced us. I had to follow my heart, and I am happy with the man I chose.”
“Are you?” Two Crows asked. “Because I see a woman so hurting to have a daughter, she is training a foreigner in her ways as a replacement.”
Ayawa turned to face him as he looked away, his gaze on the fighters before them. “We never settled down to have a family because we had to keep running! I would have started a family years ago if I knew they would be safe, but my people will never allow me a life they don't approve of. I am sick of being told who I am allowed to love and that I have a responsibility to breed with a man I don't love. I am tired of fighting with the tribes.”
“There is scarcely any left to fight with,” he replied. “You kill everyone we send after you.”
“The people you send after me keep trying to kill Tavis,” she replied.
“I would not worry; I am the last who will come. I just wanted to know why.”
Ayawa shook her head and went back to watching the fight. “I left because I loved him,” Ayawa said. “I saw something in him that captivated me, and I had to follow. He has been nothing but a good man, and together we have accomplished much. I didn't want to be a princess, married off to a man I hardly knew. If they wanted us to bond, they should have given us time, not ordered me to accept your offer and breed like a cow.”
“They were rather insistent you have children right away,” he agreed. “But I offered you my bow, why did you take it, and not leave it behind?”
Ayawa took a deep breath. “I had no choice. They locked me away and were watching like hawks. It was the only weapon I was allowed to keep because it was your offering. I knew if I fled without something to fight with, I would be brought down quickly. I needed the bow to get away.”
“So I handed you the very tool you needed to escape me,” he said with a nod. “Poetic.”
Ayawa smiled slightly and folded her arms. “I did feel bad about taking it.”
“I am glad you felt something for me,” he replied.
“So, what happened to you after I left?” she asked.
“I married another,” he replied. “Sahnti of the white leaf.”
“You married that dainty little flower of a woman?” Ayawa balked. “She doesn’t even know how to fight.”
“After you, I considered that to be her most endearing quality. She was less likely to run away and kill everyone in her path,” he replied with a slight smile.
Ayawa smiled wider and nodded in agreement.
“I have three children, a boy, and two daughters. I hope you do not mind, but I named one of my daughters Ayowa.”
“And they didn’t balk a the choice?”
“They did, but I do not care what they think. You are a great warrior and the most spirited woman our peoples have known in hundreds of years. Perhaps we should have let you go so that you could return when your heart was ready.”
“I would never have returned,” Ayawa said. “And they would not accept me now.”
“They would if you had the blades,” he replied. “I am still open to discussion.”
“I am not trading you the girl,” Ayawa said firmly.
He smiled and shook his head. “I never wanted the girl. I just wanted to test you and see what was truly important. You proved once again that you follow your heart, and love was more important than wealth and power.”
“So, if I offered to trade you now, you wouldn't take her?”
“I will put the knives in your hand and kiss your fingers,” he said with a smile.
Ayawa laughed and shook her head. “I am afraid I am fond of her now. As reckless and foolish as she is, she is mine.”
“Will she be joining you on the hunt?” he asked with a sideways glance.
Ayawa studied the woman and let out a sigh. “I don't know. I am sure she wants it, but she is more of a daughter to me now.”
“You should consider it,” he said. “She has your heart and would stand at your side through the fires of life.” He turned and began to walk away as Ayawa looked at Gedris with heavy eyes. “You should think about starting your family and having a proper daughter,” he said as he walked away. “No more will we come after you.”
“You never told me why you had the knives,” she called after him.
He turned to call back with a smile. “They were a gift for you on our wedding day. It was the reason the women wanted you to marry me. I refused to give them to anyone but you, and only if you married me. They wanted you to become the next warrior queen and restore our people. It is my fault that they refused your desires for him, and drove you to act so rashly. I am sorry for what I did, and I will ensure the tribes leave you be. You are free to start your family.”
She watched him go with a sense of peace and a new appreciation for the man she left behind. For so long, she and Tavis had run, always looking over their shoulder, waiting for the next group sent to bring them back. She knew his words were true, there would be no more, and the doorway to a family was finally open.
With a smile, she turned back to Tavis and Gedris and watched the girl shaping up to be a good woman. She had the spirit needed to be a good warrior; maybe she would be joining on the hunt when this was done.
The next morning they set out across country, heading northeast for the distant mountains. With any luck, they would be there in four days and to their final destination in five. Gedris was permitted to ride but chose to walk instead, stuffing her armor in a pack and carrying it for weight. Ayawa approved of the woman's desire to grow stronger and noted the tone of muscle shaping in her legs. Tavis was his usual smiling self, with his hat tipped low as if trying to hide his face. Jessivel was nothing like Tavis, his face dour reflecting his mood as they traveled.
“We are moving too slowly,” Jessivel said as the column marched across an open plain.
“You are the one who insisted on taking this burden on his shoulders,” Ayawa snapped as she stood in the saddle, scouting the surrounding landscape.
“We would be faster on the roads,” Jessivel pointed out.
“The roads are patrolled by your order and the path behind by assassins,” she argued. “If you wanted an easy passage, you should have bypassed the camps.”
Jessivel shook his head in irritation and held his tongue as he looked out over the lines of ill-equipped and tired women marching in the sun.
Ayawa knew he was concerned for their well-being, which was admirable, but from her point of view, they were better off in the camp. No matter how she argued against capturing it, his honor wouldn't allow it. He insisted on freeing them and now marched a veritable army of angry women north His men and those of Captain Sallins were doing the best they could. Women who were too weak to walk were put on horses and led by others. The priests of Astikar marched in screening lines to either side of the columns, protecting the women in the center. The plains people offered many of their horses, and some of their numbers were ahead scouting and hunting. Still, it was a slow pace that was taking a toll on his nerves.
He pressed her time and again for details on where they were going, but she refused to tell him. She still didn't trust him completely, and certainly not his men. Any of them could be bidding his time until he learned what they needed and slipped away in the night. She wasn't prepared to tell them anything until the old fort was in sight, and there was no point in keeping the secret.
“Some of these women are wearing house shoes,” he said as if Ayawa didn’t already know that.
“We don't have time to stop in a town and have boots made,” Ayawa said in irritation. “We aren't far from our destination; they will have to make do until we reach it.”
“We should send some men ahead to purchase supplies and meet us there,” he suggested.
“There are no towns of any importance north of here, and you know it. We will be crossing the east road in hours, and then it's tiny farming villages and barren land for miles.”
“And where are we going then?” he demanded. Ayawa shook her head at the question he knew she wasn't going to answer. “Fine, just get me to Gersius; it is the only way I am going to find peace,” he said.
Ayawa laughed at the absurdity of that statement and looked at him with a smile. “If you think Gersius is going to lead you to peace, then you have no idea what’s coming.”
“Speaking of Gersius, I need to ask you something,” he said, looking over the people nearby and then leaning in to whisper. “What is his family name?”
Ayawa looked at him incredulously, as if he had said the most absurd thing possible. “You don't know his family name?”
Jessivel let out an annoyed sigh. “He is Gersius Knight-Captain of Astikar,” Jessivel replied. “Just as I am Jessivel Lord Seeker of Astikar.”
Ayawa nodded in understanding; the men were known by their titles, not their families. She wondered why it was important and took a moment to consider if she should keep the information.
“Do you know?” Jessivel asked.
“It’s Udwan,” she replied.
“Then he is from a wealthy family,” Jessivel nodded. “The Udwans have a trading network from Calathen to the silver isles. Why did he join the order of Astikar?”
“Family tradition,” Ayawa said. “His father was a knight captain, as was his father before him back generations.”
Jessivel went stone-faced as he thought of something then surmised his thoughts. “No doubt his family is arrested and maybe even executed for his crimes.”
“His family packed up and fled east before he left to find the dragon,” Ayawa said. “They are more than likely safe in some estate near the coast, waiting to see how this war ends.”
“Are you sure all of them got away? Jessivel asked.
“All of them that could be reached,” Ayawa said as she turned to glare at him. “What are you prying for here?”
“I am interested in knowing who Kelliendra is,” he said. “And why the raven guard is hunting her.”
“Where did you hear that name?” Ayawa demanded.
“We questioned some of the guards, and they said the ravens were hunting for her and another. They said she came from the lands the Doan already occupied.” Ayawa glanced to where Tavis rode nearby as she worked on a thought. “You're not going to tell me, are you?” Jessivel asked.
“Gersius can tell you if he chooses, and you will stand before him soon enough.”
“And what of the dispatches you confiscated?” he asked. “Do you plan to share what you discovered with us?”
“You know about that?” Ayawa asked.
“I know how to ask the right questions,” Jessivel replied. “And not everybody realizes your trying to hide everything.”
Ayawa sighed and looked ahead with a stone expression. “I want Gersius to read them first. They contain something that might be of interest to him. He will decide if it interests you.” She watched as he steered his horse off in anger and went to inspect his men. She was pleased that he was so unhappy with the arrangement and smiled wide as Tavis rode in closer.
“You are intentionally provoking him,” he said.
“I am doing no such thing,” she said. “I told him I would lead him to Gersius, and I am doing just that.”
“He’s worried about the women,” Tavis said. “He wants to get them to safety.”
“Taking them to Gersius isn't going to make them safe,” Ayawa said. “If anything, it is going to put them in more danger.”
Tavis nodded and looked over the lines of women streaming across the field. “How many more camps do you think there are?”
“If what these women say is true, then there have to be many. They are arresting any woman even suspected of having once worshiped Ulustrah. I bet we find dozens once we cross into the old empire.”
“How could the order of Astikar commit such a crime?” he pressed.
“Something more important than the Doan is driving them,” Ayawa said. “Something that destroying a faith over is considered a worthy price to pay.”
“But what could it be?” he asked.
“Gersius will find out when he beats it from that old fools hide,” Ayawa replied.
“He will have to capture Calathen,” Tavis reminded her. “The city that has never fallen.”
“If anybody can take the city, Gersius can,” Ayawa remarked. Tavis nodded and went back to surveying the march, riding beside her in silence. “What do you think about Kelliendra being hunted by the ravens?” she asked after a long moment passed.
“I think it’s a terrible thing to consider,” Tavis said. “If it’s true, I hope she runs.”
Ayawa nodded and stared ahead with an unsettled feeling in her stomach. After taking the camp, they scoured it for documents finding a dozen dispatches demanding they locate a different woman, one that made them both uncertain. She was described as having long blue hair and fair skin, a sign that she had to be a dragon. They briefly argued if Lilly had separated from Gersius and gone on ahead, but that was impossible to imagine. Whoever this blue-haired woman was, she was somehow involved in what was going on. The letters said she was in Calathen but a week ago, and was rapidly moving northeast.
One of the dispatches was an order to find Jessivel and put him on her trail instead of Gersius. There was also a reference to Carrigara, and that she and this blue-haired woman were not to meet. Because of the danger, Carrigara would no longer be available to create new wards in the north. As much as they searched, they found only one reference to the woman's name. It said she might be traveling under the name Hellen. Now to think that Kelliendra was also being hunted made this all the direr. Gersius would feel the burden of that guilt the moment he found out. Tavis suggested they not tell him, and let him focus on the task at hand.
She understood his concerns and felt them too, but like everybody else had no answers. She shook the thought away and focused on the real problem that loomed ahead. Soon they would be crossing the last major road this far north, and for about an hour would be exposed and visible. It would take too long to sneak them over in small groups. They had to risk crossing in force and deal with the consequences. As the hours rolled by, they made their way inexorably closer until scouts came running back with cries of alarm.
“What did you see?” Ayawa asked as a plainsman arrived in a full run.
“There is fighting on the road,” he said in a firm voice, hardly sounding as if he had been running.
“Fighting?” Jessivel asked.
The man nodded as he took a deep breath.
“Did you see who it was?” Ayawa asked.
“It is an army of the priestesses flying banners of a golden flower on a white background,” he said.
“The first company,” Gedris said in shock. “They must have recalled them from the eastern seas.”
“What are they fighting?” Ayawa demanded in a harsh voice as her tension mounted
“Twice their number in infantry supported by cavalry of Astikar,” the man said.
“Herris, Put the men back on their horses,” Jessivel commanded to his captain. “We need to intervene.”
“You’re going to charge an army with your few men?” Ayawa asked.
“You heard him,” Jessivel said with a wave of his hand. “They are outnumbered more than two to one.”
“By infantry,” Ayawa reminded and looked back to the scout. “How many priests of Astikar did you see?”
“No more than a dozen,” he said.
Ayawa nodded and looked Jessivel firm in the eyes. “I am sure an entire formation of Priestesses can deal with double their number in infantry, and dozen battle priests.”
“I will not stand by and let this slaughter go unchecked,” Captain Sallins added as he joined the conversation.
“And what is going to keep that army from turning on you?” Ayawa asked. “You're wearing the armor of their enemy. Those women have no idea you're helping them.”
Jessivel shook his head in frustration as Ayawa held her gaze firm. “Why do you seek to avoid conflict at every turn?”
“Because I know what we risk by charging down there.”
Tavis rode in closer and tipped his hat up to look between the two. “Maybe we should mount his men and move in closer to look for ourselves,” he suggested. “If they do need our help, we might be able to offer something.”
Ayawa relented and pulled Gedris up to ride behind her as she took the lead. The cavalry of Astikar rode with her as the infantry ran behind to catch up later. They heard the sounds of the battle before they saw it, and when they did, it made them pause.
“That's a big army,” Tavis said as he looked down to see nearly a thousand women moving in perfect formations against twice their number of men. Walls of tangled vines covered their flanks and funneled the men into a head on confrontation. Already the ground between them was littered with bodies as the two armies clashed in a broad front across the road.
“They must have increased the size of the company,” Gedris said. “They used to number no more than three hundred.”
“They probably conscripted from every temple they passed on the way,” Ayawa said.
“We need to bring the infantry up at once,” Captain Sallins grumbled.
“They are going to be flanked,” Jessivel added as he pointed to one side. “They don’t have the numbers to meet so many on open ground.”
“The walls of vines are slowing them down,” Ayawa said. “And they are falling away to draw them into it.”
“And leaving their wounded behind,” Jessivel said. “They won't be able to heal their fallen if they keep moving back.”
Ayawa realized he was right. Despite the discipline on display, this was a numbers game, and they were heavily on the side of Astikar.
“The infantry seems to be mixed units from dozens of towns,” Tavis said.
“Conscripts, “Jessivel remarked. “The order is strong-arming the towns to provide soldiers. Probably stripping every town and village of its watch and guards.”
“And criminals,” Herris added.
“This is the common lands, not the old empire, how do they have such influence here?” Ayawa asked.
“Are you going to tell the order of Astikar they can’t have a dozen men?” Jessivel asked. “Most kingdoms in the common lands have weak kings and survive on trade with the empire lands. They probably volunteered men just to gain favor.”
Ayawa nodded as the screams of dying men and women echoed across the road.
“The priestesses will probably win, but with terrible losses,” Tavis said. “They won't be much of an army after this battle.”
“Then, we need to intervene now!” Captain Sallins insisted.
Ayawa surveyed the scene and growled in frustration as she thought of Gedris on her back.
“Put a woman of Ulustrah on the back of every horse,” Ayawa commanded.
“What? Jessivel balked. “They don’t have any equipment.”
“They aren't going to fight. They are just there to mark your men as allies, and aid in the healing when the battle breaks.” She turned to Two Crows and pointed to the flank. “I need you to fill their rear lines with arrows. Don't bother with the cavalry; their armor is too thick.”
He nodded and began calling for his people to gather up as she turned to Captain Sallins. “Bring up the infantry and any women who are brave enough to follow them in. They need to aid in healing and stand as witnesses for your men to the others.” The man nodded and turned his horse about to hurry the infantry forward.
“What do you want me to do?” Gedris asked.
“You will stay right where you are,” Ayawa said to the woman, clinging to her waist. “If you move from this saddle, I will make you regret being my rokki.”
Gedris nodded silently, and Ayawa looked to Tavis. “We need to drive between the cavalry and the infantry. We drive the priests off or overwhelm hem quickly, and then trap the infantry between the two armies.”
“And the dense plant growths will keep them contained,” Tavis said. “But many of these men think they are fighting for the right side.”
“Then let them surrender,” Ayawa said with no emotion in her voice. “Until they do, they are the enemy.”
The plains people arrived first and began to move along the hill, getting into position with their dark bows. Jessivel's Cavalry picked up women to mark them and gathered in a line to charge the priests and drive them off, while Sallins Infantry would push the gap and trap the army.
With one last look to Tavis, she turned to the plains people and silently gave the signal. Bows bent back, and arrows started to fly as Jessivels Cavalry broke cover and charged at a gallop into the field of battle. Tavis and Ayawa followed them in as the infantry poured over the hill. A moment later, the arrows began to land with unnerving accuracy, and men began to die.
Cries of alarm went up from both sides to see knights of Astikar bearing down. The priests on horseback assumed it was reinforcements until the first hammers blasted into their ranks. They returned the hammers only to strike green shields as the women riding with them intercepted the weapons.
There was confusion all up and down the line as the infantry in the middle began to seek cover from the arrows. It was clear they didn't realize the new priests of Astikar were attacking them until the infantry was almost on them. They tried to wheel around and create two formations but were tangled in vines with every step. Once Captain Sallins was in position, the arrows stopped, and his men marched ahead with deadly precision. The trapped infantry put up the best fight it could but quickly found themselves on the losing side.
The cavalry was even worse off, outnumbered two to one with horses being tangled in vines they were falling rapidly. In less than a minute, their numbers were reduced to five. A minute later, only one man was standing, but he defiantly refused to surrender and called them traitors. Jessivel dealt with him personally and gave him a quick blessing as he died.
Tavis and Ayawa helped where they could with weaves and arrows, using their horses to stay clear of any direct combat. In minutes it was over, and the surviving infantry finally surrendered. There was a tense moment when the first company leader, a fiery woman of great anger by the name of Chiune, formed her army up to meet the new threat. Several of the women from the camps were high priestesses and called on the woman to stop and then explained what was happening.
The women of the first company then broke ranks and ran for the wounded, quickly working to save who they could. The women from the camps aided in their efforts, and many were saved from a slow death. Chiune had to be pressured into helping the infantry, but eventually, they agreed and healed many of them as well. When the dust settled, Ayawa, Tavis, Jessivel, and Captain Sallins stood before Chiune and her two chief lieutenants. She wore white armor with golden trims and a green plum down the back of her helmet as she glared at them with angry eyes.
Ayawa did most of the talking explaining how they were going to help Gersius take the city and supplant the Father Abbot. She made sure to be close enough so the women could see her aura and establish the truth. She then explained how Jessivel knew the truth, and he and the men with him abandoned the Father Abbot to join Gersius and set things right.
“We are not here to aid Gersius in his conquest,” Chiune said. “We are to join Governess Commander Thayle in her campaign to take the city.”
“Governess Commander?” Tavis repeated under his breath.
“I don’t know what she means either,” Ayawa said. “But who knows what’s happened since we parted.”
“We are told she will meet us on the borders of the empire,” Chiune said her voice firm and commanding.
Ayawa stepped closer and looked the woman firmly in the eyes and began to speak. “Thayle is traveling with Gersius. If you are looking for her, then I recommend you come with us.”
“We have orders to join her at the border,” Chiune said. “They assure us we will meet her there.”
“She isn’t going straight to the border,” Ayawa argued. “She is part of Gersius’s larger army, and they are grouping up north of here.”
Chiune squinted as she used the sight to study Ayawa’s truth. She finally let out a sigh and turned to the women on her right. “Order the wagons brought up, and get the women ready to march.
“You have wagons?” Tavis asked.
“We have a supply train for our army,” the woman said in a dry, emotionless voice. “Enough food supplies and equipment to keep my army in the field for months.”
“Do you have anything you can spare?” Tavis asked. “Most of our women have little but the clothing on their backs.”
Chiune looked annoyed at the question and then looked over the rabble of women standing with the priests of Astikar. “I will do what I can, provided it does not hinder my army's fighting strength.”
“She’s a friendly one,” Herris whispered as Jessivel nodded with a smile.
A few minutes later, the wagons were brought up, and instructions were issued to make ready to travel. As they worked to get ready, a woman flanked by two guards in full helms walked from the wagons to the gathered leaders. Chiune met her gaze and bowed as a dark-haired woman with a pleasant smile arrived.
“So these are our heroes,” she said as she looked over the group. Her eyes seemed to be taking in every detail as she studied them one by one. “I can only assume you are Ayawa.”
Ayawa nodded her head as her apprehension grew. “And may I ask who you are?”
The strange woman nodded, but it was Chiune who answered. “This is Prime Yarvine of Calathen,” she said. “We discovered her fleeing east down the road just two days ago.”
Ayawa looked at the woman in disbelief as she smiled at her introduction. “You are a prime?” Ayawa asked.
“I am,” Yarvine replied. “I manage Calathen and all the lands of the old empire.”
“How did you escape the city?” Ayawa asked.
“I wasn't in the city when the trouble started,” she answered. “I learned of what was going on and sought council with allies. We agreed that I would be of better use going east. I ran into my sisters on the road and have joined their army as they march to meet Governess Commander Thayle.”
Ayawa nodded as Gedris looked around her back to study the woman.
“She is telling the truth,” Gedris whispered. “But she is speaking in general terms to avoid saying anything that can be tested.”
Ayawa didn't react and only nodded to Yarvine. “When did Thayle become a Governess Commander?” Ayawa asked.
“When our temple in Eastgate was attacked,” Chiune said. “She has been ordered to raise an army and shatter the priests of Astikar in Calathen.”
“Why Thayle and not you?” Ayawa asked.
It was evident by the scowl that crossed the woman's face that she wondered the same thing. With a defiant glare, she answered, her voice dripping with displeasure. “She travels with Gersius and his army. The primes voted to make her overall commander because of her connection to him.”
“I didn't get to vote, of course,” Yarvine added. “I was already deposed when the decision was made, or I would have selected somebody more capable.” She gave Chiune a smile with that remark.
“Thayle strikes me as more than capable,” Ayawa replied. “And very faithful to her goddess.”
“I am certain her faith is strong,” Yarvine said with a strange smile. “But I will decide if she is worthy of staying in command when I meet her. I am told you know where she is, and plan to lead us there.”
Ayawa didn't like the sound of that at all, nor the tone of voice used. Something about this Yarvine felt off, but Gedris said she was truthful.
“I will take you there but will say no more until we arrive. I am sworn to protect the location of our rallying point until Gersius arrives.”
Yarvine smiled again as her eyes tested the integrity of Ayawa's words. With a nod, she relented with a “Very well, but Chiune will take command of the women in your care, and I will take command of her.” She leaned over to get a better look at Gedris riding in a simple dress; her armor tucked away in her pack. “She should march with her sisters.”
“Gedris is my rokki,” Ayawa said firmly. “She is a woman I took under my wing to train and protect, and she stays with me.”
“Yarvine studied Ayawa a moment, and her smile faded slightly. “Surely she would rather learn a faith, Ulustrah is a noble calling for a woman.”
“I am already training her to know the Earth Mother,” Ayawa said. “She stays with me.”
Yarvine nodded her head, but a frown replaced the smile. Ayawa watched closely as Yarvine went back to the wagons, and Chiune took over to organize the new women for travel.
“Why didn’t you tell her Gedris was a priestess of Ulustrah?” Tavis asked when the women were away.
“Because she is my rokki first, and that woman would not understand. She would demand Gedris be taken from me, and I would have to kill her.”
Tavis let out a sigh and shook his head. “You realize she can see your lies?”
“I didn’t lie. Everything I said was the truth. She never asked if Gedris was a priestess of Ulustrah already.”
“She implied it.”
“And I never said she wasn’t, only that she was my rokki. It isn’t my fault she assumed the wrong thing.”
Tavis smiled and tipped his hat low. “Better keep that a secret then. She might not understand if she finds out later.”
Ayawa looked down at the hands wrapped around her waist and smiled. “From now on, you ride on my horse,” she said.
Gedris nodded and laid her head to Ayawa’s shoulder as Ayawa turned the horse about. “Let’s get this rabble moving before something else comes down the road.”
Tavis smiled wider as he saw the two women together and moved to help organize the column to march. The surrendered men were given the choice of joining or going home. Most chose to leave, but a few remained after hearing the truth from Jessivel. Those that decided to leave were stripped of weapons and gear and sent on their way. After several long minutes, the wagons were turned, and Ayawa led the way off the road, striking north into the wilderness. She chose a careful path to ease the passage of the wagons as they lumbered into the trees.
During the march, Chiune and Jessivel argued but seemed to come to an understanding when Yarvine intervened. When the sun began to dip, Ayawa hid them as best she could in the trees and sent men out to hunt. Yarvine complained about the supplies available for the women, but Ayawa explained the only option was to leave them in the camps. It shocked many to hear Yarvine say they would have been better off, and that perhaps some of them should be sent east to lighten the burden. Ayawa agreed and turned Yarvine's ire on Jessivel.
Jessivel argued that they were close to their destination and that sending the women off with nothing but the clothing on their backs was cruel. Yarvine was of the mindset that winning the overall war was more important and that burdening them with women they couldn't care for would hinder that.
As much as Ayawa agreed, she ended the argument by stating the women were coming with, and they would manage enough food and water to keep them minimally cared for. Chiune offered some tents and went through the women looking for the best fighters. She had enough equipment to arm fifty of them and intended to add them to her forces.
Ayawa watched as the camp settled in, and hunters began to return with small game. She spent some time working with Gedris, walking her through combat poses and sparing a little. She showed her how to sweep an opponent's legs when their guard was too high and how to pull them over when they overreached. She then set her to sparing with Tavis again, making her yelp with a snap of her tree branch whenever she made a mistake.
They were passed the final road and on the last few days to Gams. If all went well, they would be safely folded into his camp before any of their enemies could catch them. Once there, all they would have to do was wait for Gersius. Then the real struggle would begin.
She bedded down for the night lying beside Tavis as he held her in his arms. Gedris was curled up on a bedroll right beside her, wearing her new leather armor. The women of the southern plains had completed it just that evening and given it to them. Gedris now looked like a southern warrior, if not for the color of her skin. Ayawa reached over and ran a hand down one of her arms. Gedris was trying so hard to win her approval but still had too much of that impulsiveness.
She looked up to see Yarvine walking among the wagons giving instructions as if she was the commander of their entire army. She finally turned and made her way to Ayawa with a smile on her face.
“I would like to use our scryer to relay a message to the other primes and tell them where we are going,” Yarvine said.
Ayawa shook her head and locked eyes with the woman whose smile began to fade. “Nobody will learn that until we get there,” Ayawa said firmly.
“I am not your enemy,” Yarvine said. “I am a Prime of Ulustrah, and I need to know where we are going.”
“I don't care if you are Ulustrah herself, I am not telling you,” Ayawa argued as Tavis looked up. There was a twitch of irritation in Yarvine's face, and something of a predatory look came to her eyes. Ayawa wondered what was going on in that mind and why she was so insistent on knowing.
“You are a very difficult woman,” Yarvine said at last. “You put us all in danger with our secretive ways.”
“I will put Gersius in danger by not being secretive,” Ayawa said. “He is the one I trust to end this war and the one to whom I owe my loyalty. I mean your order no disrespect, but I will not betray his location to anyone and will kill to keep it. You will have to wait until we get there.”
Yarvine rolled her eyes and folded her arms as the anger became apparent on her face. “And what if the poor girl you kidnapped and made a slave?” she asked. “How am I to stand by and watch you treat a woman like your property?”
“She is my property,” Ayawa said. “She swore that oath herself. She had the choice to leave and walk her own path, but she chose and now stays with me.”
Yarvine’s mouth formed a narrow line as she looked at Gedris and scowled. “Do you have any idea how the other women will receive that? To see a woman treated like some object to be beaten with a lash? I want her turned over to our camp. We will train her to worship the goddess.”
“I will kill you myself before I let that happen,” Ayawa said. “She swore an oath to serve me, and she is going to pay her oath in full.”
“That's twice you have threatened a prime of Ulustrah,” the woman growled. “If you are friends of Gerisus, then I can only assume he is just like you.”
“No,” Ayawa said. “He's worse. If you threatened him, he would already have dealt with you. Now, if you don't mind, we would like to get some rest.”
Yarvine was clearly annoyed, but she tossed her head and headed back to the wagons of Ulustrah and the camp beyond. Ayawa waited until she was gone to look to Gedris. “What did you see?”
“She told the truth about everything up until she mentioned Gersius,” Gedris said.
“What part of that wasn’t true?” Tavis asked.
“When she said I can only assume he is just like you.”
“That would mean she doesn’t have to assume,” Tavis said.
“Because she already knows him,” Ayawa replied. “
“She is from Calathen; maybe they have met,” Tavis said.
Ayawa nodded and turned to Gedris. “I want you to keep quiet about being a priestess. If you are asked, you tell them you are my rokki and nothing more. Don't use any of your blessings unless you absolutely have to.”
“But the women from the camps already know I am a priestess,” Gedris replied.
“Yevine hasn't thought to ask them yet, so let's not do anything to alert her. You stay at my side everywhere I go, and you talk to no one without my approval.” She watched the camp again for a moment and then asked another question. “What is a scryer?”
Gedris explained how some of her order could send a message across the divine link they shared. It was tricky to do and often took a long time, but they could do it anywhere they had a bowl of water and a quiet place to meditate.
“Then they can communicate over great distances,” Ayawa said as she thought it through. “That explains how the first company was brought forward so fast.”
“Why can’t they just talk to Gersius and ask him where he is then?” Tavis asked. “Surely has a scryer of his own by now.”
“It doesn't' work like that,” Gedris said. “The sender has to know where the destination is and focus on making the link. Then somebody at the destination has to be sitting in quiet meditation waiting for a link to happen. It has to be near impossible to send a message to a moving army unless you know exactly where they are going to stop.”
“So she could send from here to Eastgate, but Eastgate couldn’t send back?” Ayawa asked.
“Right, but once a sender has established a link, the conversation is both ways. Eastgate likely has priests sitting in meditation waiting for such efforts.”
“You mean priestesses,” Ayawa said.
Gedris shook her head. “Nearly all scryers and primes are male. Yarvine is one of the rare primes that is a woman.”
“Why is that?” Ayawa asked.
Gedris looked lost as she replied. “Ulustrah only knows. She picks them herself. When a new prime is chosen, it is usually done with a vision shared by a whole temple. The person in question is shown to have been elevated, and then he or she will be questioned by the existing primes to establish the truth. Scryers are different. They are usually meditating and staring into their mirrors when they see visions of distant temples. When they do, we train them to make the link and begin their new roles.”
“Why men?” Ayawa asked. “Your order is almost all women. We have liberated three men in two camps.”
“None of us know why, but they usually prove to be great leaders with an even temperament and a loving grace. Something about a man's heart appeals to Ulustrah when it comes to protecting a flock. To some, the role of prime only means he is the most responsible for those under him. It isn't so much a rank of privilege as it is an entrusting of great responsibility. He is not there to enjoy his role. He is there to make sure his priestesses enjoy theirs.”
“A servant leader,” Tavis said with a nod.
“I respect the way your order looks on its leadership,” Ayawa said.
Gedris looked into the camp and shifted on her bedroll. “I hope she never finds out about me. I don't want to be taken from you.”
Ayawa reached over and put her hand over Gedris’s. “Nobody can take you from me while I am alive. They tried to take Tavis from me many times and paid dearly for it.”
Gedris nodded and laid back down as Ayawa studied the distant camp. Something was clawing at her heart like a warning, and she felt it's oppressive weight. She tightened her grip over Gedris's hand and prayed Gersius wouldn't be long. Once he was there, all these problems would be his, and she would be free to keep her loved ones safe. Her eyes went wide as she realized what her thoughts had just said.
“Sleep well, I will keep you safe,” Ayawa whispered as she reached for Tavis with her other hand. “I will keep you all safe.”
Comments
WhiteRabbit
tracked her down cornered her and were subsequently killed ->tracked her down, cornered her, and were subsequently killed everybody realizes your -> you're
