‘Indeed,’ he said. ‘They are currently swarming over the Plateau as refugees. Many of them I believe are being fed and watered in a camp at Rainsby, while I hear that others are making their way up to the new Holdings town on the northern shore.’
‘But we were in Rainsby,’ Daphne said. ‘I didn’t see any.’
‘As my husband mentioned,’ Douanna said, ‘they are in a camp to the east of the town. I saw no reason to divert our route to visit them. I believe it is a scene of quite dreadful squalor.’
‘They do seem irredeemably savage,’ Teolan said. ‘I watched them in a victory parade, massive they were, muscles like granite.’
‘Also descended from apes,’ Douanna said, smiling.
‘Quite,’ Teolan said. ‘And finally,’ he pointed to the last point of the star, the large subcontinent in the north west. It was coloured green to depict a vast forest, but was otherwise featureless. ‘Sanang. The one people that the Rahain have not yet successfully made contact with, excepting tales from the Holdings frontier. Hopefully Daphne, you will oblige me by telling me everything you remember about it.’
Daphne put down her glass and glanced at the two Rahain.
‘This has all been very enlightening, but why am I here? What is it that you think I’m suitable for, exactly?’
‘My dearest Daphne,’ Douanna said, taking a sip from her wineglass, ‘nothing that is beyond your more than ample skills.’
‘What?’
‘It’s simple really,’ Douanna said. ‘We would like you to kill a few people.’
Chapter 4
Ice Bath
Rahain Capital, Rahain Republic – 12th Day, First Third Summer 504
Killop awoke shivering, a deep cold penetrating his skin, right down to his bones. He felt a rough hide blanket cover him, and gentle hands placed a folded bundle under his head as a pillow.
‘Kallie,’ he groaned.
‘No,’ a voice said. ‘The other one.’
He opened his eyes, a headache pounding behind his temples.
‘Bridget?’
‘Aye, Killop,’ she said, sitting in her ragged clothes on the dirty floor of the cage next to him. ‘Kallie’s sleeping.’ She nodded over to a figure lying wrapped in furs by the back wall of the cage.
Killop looked around. The large room was dark, with just a solitary lamp burning in a wall sconce high up on the left. The strange noises of the birds and animals, and their accompanying smells, filled the air.
‘Where did the lizards take you this time?’ Bridget asked.
He lay back down and closed his eyes.
‘Same room as before,’ he said, his teeth chattering as he spoke. ‘Except this time they had a bathtub filled with ice. They kept the chains on and threw me in.’
Bridget tutted. ‘Fucking animals. At least yer clean, but.’
‘The Rahain just stood around and watched,’ he went on, ‘just like the times before. Watching, and writing things down on scrolls. In the end I guess I must have passed out from the cold.’
She touched his arm. ‘You’re freezing! Your skin’s almost blue.’ She started to rub his hands and fingers vigorously, then worked up to his wrists and forearms.
Killop gazed out through the bars of the cage at the other trapped animals, stacked high against the walls of the room. We are just like them, he thought. Dumb animals in cages.
‘I thought we were going to die in that pit,’ Bridget said, ‘before we got moved here. I mean, this is a shithole, but it’s fucking paradise compared to that other place. But I’m not so sure that we’re better off after all. Are they going to keep torturing you until they kill you? What do they want?’
‘Knowledge, I think,’ Killop said, his voice barely a whisper. ‘They know we’re tougher than them, they just want to discover by how much.’
‘Then they’re going about it the wrong way,’ Bridget said. ‘Take our chains off and we’ll fucking show them exactly how much tougher we are.’
Killop raised a faint smile.
‘Did Kallie wake up while I was away?’ he asked.
‘Aye, for a bit,’ she said. ‘Didn’t say anything, but.’
‘We need to keep her strength up.’
‘Oh Killop,’ Bridget sighed, ‘when are you going to realise that Kallie might never be coming back? She hasn’t spoken in a third, some days she completely forgets to eat or drink and, if I’m honest, I’m getting a little tired of cleaning up after her.’
Killop turned his face away.
He hadn’t been able to protect her. He knew it was his fault, even though Bridget had told him a hundred times that there was nothing he could have done. Those lizard soldiers had been looking for revenge, and there had been too many for him to stop on his own. But he also knew that they had chosen Kallie for the beating because of him, because they had believed that he had been responsible for stirring up the trouble at the transit camp.
Killop closed his eyes, trying to keep the memories from flooding his mind.
He heard Bridget get up. He opened his eyes a crack and watched the young Brig woman gather up more blankets in her arms. She came back to his side, and piled them on top of him. He pulled the filthy covers around his body, feeling the deep cold slowly start to fade.
He felt Bridget lift the blankets up, and snuggle in behind him.
‘Bridget,’ he whispered, ‘I’m not sure this is a good idea.’
‘Don’t be an idiot,’ she said, pulling him close, her front to his back. ‘You’re the only person in this world that I need and trust, and I’m fucked if I’m letting you die from the cold.’
He closed his eyes, feeling the press of her warm body against his back, her arm round his chest, her breath on his neck. He tried to imagine it was Kallie, but that threatened to bring back too many painful memories, so instead he emptied his mind, took the offered comfort, and sank into an exhausted sleep.
When he awoke the room was bright and busy, with young Rahain going from cage to cage, feeding the birds and animals. Killop yawned, and stretched. Bridget was already up, and was standing by the bars, watching the Rahain. At the back of the cage, in the shade, Kallie sat against the wall, hugging her knees, with blankets wrapped around her. She was staring into the middle distance.
‘Morning,’ he said to her.
Her eyes flickered over to him for a second, then resumed staring.
He stood up, letting the grimy covers and blankets fall to the stone floor. A few of the young Rahain stopped what they were doing and gazed at him as he walked to the front of the cage. He jumped up and grabbed hold of a horizontal beam above his head, and pulled himself up, stretching his muscles as he exercised.
‘Stop showing off,’ Bridget muttered.
After twenty pulls he dropped to the floor. ‘We need to keep in shape,’ he said, ‘for when the time comes to rip off their heads.’
Bridget laughed. He was always surprised at how, despite everything they had been through, she had managed to keep her spirit. It rubbed off on him, he knew. Without Bridget, he would have long ago lost his daily battle with despair.
Attracted by the laughter, a few of the Rahain ventured closer to the cage. They looked young, Killop thought. Students, he guessed, which would make the middle-aged woman in black robes their teacher. For the six days since they had arrived, they had been observed, discussed, and made to undergo all manner of strange, and sometimes painful, tests. The previous day’s ice-bath had been the worst yet, although being tied upside down by his ankles until he had passed out the day before hadn’t been much fun either.
‘Come on,’ Bridget called out to the students in a cheerful tone. ‘Come closer, ya wee bastards, and I’ll wring yer fucking necks for you.’
Killop smiled.
One of the Rahain approached until he was almost within touching distance. He was a young man, practically a child, and held his hands out to show they were empty. He edged forward, while his companions stayed where they were.
&nbs
p; He pointed at his chest. ‘Pay-oh-tan.’
Bridget looked at Killop, an eyebrow raised.
‘Is this one actually trying to talk to us?’
Killop leaned his arm out through the bars and pointed at the Rahain.
‘Pay-oh-tan,’ he said. He then pointed to himself. ‘Killop.’
The Rahain laughed out loud, and looked back at his companions, speaking excitedly. The others looked nervous and uncomfortable, and went back to feeding the animals, but the young man remained.
He pointed at Killop. ‘Klee-hop.’
Bridget laughed. ‘No, you dumb fuck, it’s Kill-op, Kill-op, Killop.’
‘Killop?’ the Rahain tried again.
‘Aye, that’s it,’ she grinned.
The young Rahain pointed at her.
‘Bridget,’ she said.
The Rahain looked confused. ‘Bree-got?’
‘Close enough,’ she laughed.
The doors to the room swung open, and the rest of the class entered, led by the woman in black robes. She saw the young Rahain standing close to the Kellach cage.
‘Paeotan!’ she shouted in alarm.
The young man blushed and ran to the others, and Killop watched him receive a dressing down from the teacher.
As the class settled, Rahain guards brought the captives their daily supply of food and water. Killop knew the routine well. He and Bridget moved to the back of the cage, next to the wall where Kallie sat motionless, while long pikes were thrust through the bars to keep them from moving. A small hatch was opened, and the previous day’s empty food-crate and water barrel were removed, and full ones put in their place. At the other side of the cage, the reverse operation was carried out on their toilet trough.
Both hatches were relocked, and the pikes withdrawn. Bridget made straight for the crate of food. As she rooted through the contents, Killop noticed the class come and position their chairs in a semi-circle facing the cage. The teacher was lecturing the students, while frequently pointing at the captives.
‘Look what they’ve brought for us today, Killop,’ Bridget said, as she pulled items from the crate. ‘Roasted meat, dark bread, fruit… I think, if that’s what this orange thing is.’
He crouched down by her, gathered a selection of food, and took it over to Kallie.
‘Sweetness,’ he said. ‘You should eat. It’ll help you heal.’
Her eyes flickered over him, but she remained silent.
‘I’ll get you some water,’ he said. He went over to the fresh barrel, and took a metal cup, filling it and placing it by Kallie’s side.
‘You’ll get better,’ he whispered, stroking a loose strand of red hair from her eyes.
‘This tastes good,’ he heard Bridget call over. ‘Things are looking up!’
He went back over to the bars where Bridget was sitting, and pulled a chunk of meat from the crate.
He sniffed. ‘What is it?’
‘Fuck knows,’ Bridget said, her cheeks stuffed with food. ‘Meat.’
He ate. He recognised the taste from the rare occasions he had eaten it before.
‘That fat, pink animal they have here,’ he said. ‘Think it’s called a pig.’
‘Pig, eh?’ Bridget said, nodding. ‘I like pig. Not sure about this bread though,’ she went on, picking up a piece of the dark, hard loaf.
‘Don’t think they have wheat in Rahain,’ he said.
Bridget stopped eating. She dropped the bread, and clutched her stomach.
‘Oh, Killop,’ she gasped, her face turning green.
Killop heard the background chatter from the students fade into silence.
‘What’s wrong?’ he cried.
Bridget fell to the floor, writhing in pain, sweat pouring from her forehead. She retched and choked, and held onto her stomach, as Killop watched helplessly.
Then he started to feel it himself, a searing pain shooting through his stomach and bowels, and an intense tightening of his throat. He fell forwards, crashing into the food-crate, sending its contents spilling across the floor. He bit his tongue as his jaws clamped shut, and his insides felt like they were burning up.
He saw Bridget on the floor in front of him, shuddering in a fit, foam spraying from her blue lips, her face swollen up like a ripe plum.
His eyes shut involuntarily, and he felt himself drift.
Fingers grasped his head, prising his mouth open. He felt a stream of water flood over his face, much of it forced into his mouth. He bit the fingers holding his jaw, and received a slap across the face, as more water was poured down his throat.
He pushed the hand away, and rolled onto his knees, his gag reflex causing him to vomit over the floor. He collapsed in relief, as the pain subsided into a throbbing ache. He lifted his head from the pool of vomit, and saw Kallie, on her knees, forcing water down Bridget’s throat. Kallie held her by the shoulders as she too vomited, mostly down the front of her ragged clothes. Bridget’s head lolled backwards, and Kallie dragged her over to the wall, and covered her with a blanket.
‘Kallie,’ he gasped.
She turned, and looked at him.
‘Killop.’
‘Thank you.’
‘I wasn’t going to let them win,’ she said, pointing out of the bars towards the Rahain students, who sat transfixed.
‘Do you hear me, ya bastards!’ she cried, approaching the bars, rage across her face. ‘You’ll never beat us! Never!’
She sank to her knees, weeping, holding onto the bar in front of her. Killop staggered over, and took her in his arms. He felt tears come to his own eyes, but they were tears of relief.
By the time he looked around again, the room was still and empty, the students gone.
He helped Kallie to her feet, and she went and lay down next to Bridget. Killop gathered up the poisoned food and pushed it out of the cage, down onto the marble floor of the animal room. He cleaned up the vomit with spare straw, and pushed that out as well.
His stomach still ached from cramps, and his throat felt raw, but the water was cool and clean. He wondered what the Rahain had been trying to learn. Maybe they had just decided to kill them, and were intending to make a lesson through watching them die.
They were left alone for the rest of the day, and when the lamps were dimmed, Killop guessed that it must be evening outside. Bridget had awoken, and Killop had told her everything that had happened. Kallie was still sleeping, and hadn’t spoken since saving them both, but Killop felt more hope than he had in a long time.
Some hours later, the door to the room opened and Paeotan entered, a sack over his shoulder.
He closed the door behind him, and shuffled down the room between the rows of cages, while Killop and Bridget watched.
When he got to just out of arm’s reach, he stopped. He opened the sack, to show them a fresh supply of food. He pointed at it, and spoke to them in Rahain.
‘We should get him to eat some first,’ Bridget said.
Killop nodded, and leaned through the bars. He gestured to Paeotan, then the food. The Rahain looked puzzled, then snapped his fingers in realisation. He picked up some bread, tore off a piece and took a bite. Next he did the same with some of the pig-meat, and a handful of grapes.
He smiled at them, and patted his stomach.
Bridget beckoned him to come closer.
He hesitated, looking from Bridget to Killop, his forked tongue flickering.
‘Come on,’ Bridget said. ‘It’s not you we want to eat.’
Paeotan gulped. He approached the cage and pushed the sack through the bars into Bridget’s arms.
As Killop and Bridget ate, Paeotan got a chair, and positioned it next to the cage. He opened his grey robes, and pulled out a book. Killop looked up.
Paeotan opened the book. It was filled with pictures of objects, with words underneath.
Killop had never learned to read while in Kell. One scribe for each village had been deemed adequate for anything that required to be written down. He knew what writ
ing was, having often watched scribes at work, but the marks on the Rahain book looked like nothing he had seen before.
Paeotan pointed to the first picture, which was of a giant lizard, and said the word in Rahain.
Bridget and Killop looked at each other.
‘This is going to be a long night,’ she groaned.
Paeotan visited with food and books every night after that, while during the day the captives were subjected to further tests, none of which were as painful or life-threatening as the poisoning had been.
Although Kallie was improving, she continued to sleep for most of the day. When awake, she could fall into a trance-like state, unresponsively staring into space for hours at a time. Sometimes she would be talking, then stop mid-sentence, her eyes glazing over. Killop and Bridget would sit and wait, then eventually get up, only for Kallie to continue from where she had been speaking, sometimes after hours had passed.
That evening, as they awaited Paeotan, Kallie was in good form.
‘So you just stood there while they drew you?’ she asked Killop.
‘Aye,’ he said. ‘Easiest day I’ve had yet. I had to take my clothes off, and then they all sat around in a circle, and sketched on these big sheets of parchment. There was a different teacher, not the woman in the black robes. She’s called Niniat, by the way. I heard the students call her that.’
They heard the door open, and Paeotan entered. Behind him walked a young woman, her expression troubled.
‘Shit,’ said Bridget. ‘I hope this doesn’t mean he’s been caught.’
‘I thought you didn’t like him?’ Killop said.
‘I don’t,’ she said, ‘but he breaks up the boredom of being stuck in here.’
Paeotan approached the cage. He halted well out of reach, and lowered his sack of food. He looked at the captives, and shrugged.
The woman stepped to his side, and they talked together, their voices low. Paeotan seemed to be trying to explain something to her. He reached into his robes and pulled out one of the picture books he had been using to teach the captives. He looked worried, but came closer to the bars of the cage, until he was standing next to where the prisoners sat.
The Queen's Executioner Page 6
