Blade of the North

by Jones, Heath

  I pull myself up quickly onto the roof, stomach first, then swing my legs up to safety. Looking down through the hole I see him cursing at me as he tries to follow me up.

  Pushing myself up I run down to the edge of the roof and leap across to the next rooftop. I keep running and jump again to the remains of a stone wall and run along the top of it. Looking back, I see the soldier has finally climbed onto the roof of my house and is watching me helplessly, not daring to jump across the gap.

  “Come here!” he screams at me.

  Feeling relief at my escape I look to climb down but then see there are Peace Bringers on the ground on both sides of the wall. They must have seen me running and now they are watching me.

  “Come down, girl,” one of them calls up to me. His beard is smeared with blood – probably not his own. “There’s no escape.”

  My heart sinks. I look around and realise he is right – there is no escape. Nodding my head, I bend over, preparing to climb down. But then I see the soldier on the roof of my house and the smug look on his face. The image of Mother and Rehana lying dead on the ground fills my vision and my grief turns to anger. No, I tell myself. I won’t let the same thing happen to me. I can’t give in. I won’t give in.

  So I run.

  “Come down here!” the soldier with the bloodied beard yells up at me.

  The wall is broken and uneven, but my balance is good. I run, down and up, around a corner then I leap onto the remains of another rooftop. It crumbles further as I land on it, but it holds my weight. I keep running and leaping, the sounds of pursuit following me from below.

  My lungs are burning and the smoke in the air makes it even harder to breathe, but I can’t stop. A helmeted head suddenly appears at the edge of the rooftop in front of me. I run harder towards him then step onto his back as he is still pulling himself up and leap across to the next rooftop. I race across it then jump again onto a broken-down wall on my left. The wall angles down as I run until it is only six or seven feet above the ground. I hear the footsteps and shouts of my chasers, but right now there are none in sight.

  Knowing I must get to ground if I want to escape, I leap off the wall. Rolling as I hit the ground I jump back to my feet and keep running. At the end of the street, I turn the corner and run into more fighting. There are not as many men here, but swords are still flashing, and bodies lie strewn on the ground. Slowing down I weave and duck through the fighters. A sword slashes at my head and I duck instinctively then turn to the side as the same sword tries to cut down on me. The sword comes up for another strike but stops. I finally see that the man holding the sword is one of Tigranik’s soldiers and the point of another sword is sticking out through his belly. Behind him one of the townsmen withdraws the sword then swirls and continues his fight. The soldier falls to the ground in front of me, dead.

  “There she is,” a voice calls from behind me.

  I glance over my shoulder to see three soldiers running headlong towards me. I flee again, exhausted, but the fear of being caught keeps me going. Ducking down an alley I take a few quick turns, hoping to lose them. But the sound of their footsteps continues to follow me. My legs are growing weary and I know I cannot keep running forever – I must find a place to hide. Looking around, I quickly try to orient myself to where I am – it isn’t easy with so many buildings crumbling or burnt to the ground. But I know where I am, and old Bor Crane’s bar is not far from here. It is my best hope if I can get there. It has a cellar.

  Turning another corner, I run down the narrow street and into the crumbling remains of The Silver Bor. Stepping over the dead bodies that litter the floor, I race into the back room where there is a trapdoor to the cellar. A rug is nailed to the floor, supposedly concealing the trapdoor. Bor Crane thought his rug ingeniously hid the cellar where he stored his collection of aged wines. He could have saved himself the effort though – everyone knew about his supposedly secret cellar. I only hope that today the rug will fool the Peace Bringers. I roll a body off the rug first before lifting open the trapdoor. I climb down the ladder and close the trapdoor on top of me as quietly as I can, just as I hear footsteps entering the bar.

  Down in the cellar, it is almost completely dark, the only light coming from small cracks in the floorboards above. I climb slowly down the ladder, one wrung at a time until my foot hits the dirt. Then I back away, my hands behind me to feel the wall when I come to it, listening for any sound from the room above.

  Footsteps suddenly pound on the floorboards above my head and I nearly jump with fright.

  “Where did she go?” a voice asks harshly.

  “I don’t know. We saw her come in here – she’s gotta be here somewhere,” another voice answers.

  Their feet stamp away, and I silently thank Bor Crane for his rug.

  Sitting down in the cellar for a brief rest I allow my breathing to finally slow back to normal. For the first time, I notice the stinging in my arms. Looking down I see the blood on them. Where did that come from? I wonder. Then I remember running through the forest and the branches that clawed at me. My legs are aching too. I haven’t run or climbed this much since last summer when I would join Jerym and the older boys playing their games in the forest. Now… now I don’t even know if any of them are alive. Even Jerym. Did he escape? Or was he caught and killed like Mother and…

  No. I won’t think about them now. I can’t. I still have to get out of this cellar and out of the town. I will think about them later.

  I stay huddled where I am, waiting. Eventually, the light filtering through the floorboards dims with the gathering dark outside. I am so exhausted I want to crawl up into a ball and sleep. But I can’t do that. So, reluctantly, I push myself up and climb the ladder. And listen. There are no noises from above. Slowly pushing the trapdoor open a crack, I look about the room. It is empty. Letting out the breath I didn’t know I was holding, I push the trapdoor all the way open and climb out.

  There is no one around. I’m about to leave when I see a pitcher on a side table. It is filled with water, and ash floats on top of it. Greedily I gulp down the water, not caring about the taste of the ash. When I’ve drained the whole thing, I cautiously make my way out of The Silver Bor and onto the street. Night is falling. The sounds of fighting have stopped, and the town is eerily quiet. The only thing I can hear is the occasional far off groan of someone dying.

  I set off in a daze, not knowing where I will go – only that I have to get out of Farley and hopefully find Rose and Jerym in the forest. Smoke still rises from many of the buildings, filling the air, but there is less now than there had been. Now that the fighting has stopped, I see no sign of the Peace Bringers, but I do see what they have left behind. Bodies. Everywhere, in every street, bodies lie motionless on the ground. I step over them now without even thinking about them and try to close my mind to the smell and the blood.

  Wandering aimlessly through the town, all I can think about is what I have lost. My mother and sister are dead. My friends are all gone. I have no one. I want to sit down and give in to my grief, but I don’t have the strength to manage even that. So I keep wandering.

  A distant rumble grows steadily louder until I finally realise what I am hearing. Footsteps. Lots of footsteps, coming from the cross street ahead. Shaking out of my reverie, I duck down behind a pile of fallen stones and wait.

  Four Peace Bringers appear, marching across the street in front of me. Following behind them is the saddest procession I have ever seen. All the people of Farley – those who are still alive, at least – are shuffling along behind the soldiers. I see a few faces I recognise. Merel, a pretty girl a few years younger than me, and Tarag, one of the boys Jerym used to chase. In the darkening night, there are not many other faces I can see, let alone recognise. It chills me, seeing them marched away to some unknown fate. And all I can do is watch.

  A cold fury builds within me, fuelled by my helplessness. I couldn’t save Mother or Rehana. And there is nothing I can do for these people being l
ed away before my eyes.

  When the street is empty again, and the last soldiers trailing the captives have gone, I finally emerge from my hiding spot. I stand there for a moment, numb - my anger suddenly gone. The wind whirls around me, blowing smoke in my face and stinging my eyes. Tears fall unbidden and run down my cheeks.

  Making my way through the empty town, I head back towards the West Gate. Sadly, I realise that Farley isn’t really empty - there just isn’t anyone alive here. Instead, it has become a giant graveyard.

  Passing through the West Gate I walk out into the fields. Smoke and clouds hide the moon, blackening an already dark night.

  I don’t even look back at Farley as I run across the fields towards the forest.

  CHAPTER TWO

  “It’s too cold,” I moan, digging my hands deeper into my pockets.

  “Too cold to play ‘catch’? Never!” Rose scolds me.

  Rose is never affected by the cold – or at least if she is, she never admits is. Even now the cold air has turned her nose and cheeks red. Beside her, Alek is grinning at me.

  “Come on,” Alek says, “you won’t be cold if you keep running.” He playfully kicks some snow at me, then joins Rose as they race after the others.

  “Wait,” I call after them. “I can’t run anymore. I’m too cold!” I shiver as I watch Rose and Alek running off through the narrow streets. “Wait!”

  Blearily I open my eyes and immediately begin to shiver. My mouth is dry and my empty stomach rumbles. Looking around, it takes a few moments to remember where I am. I’m surrounded by trees, in a forest somewhere and… then I remember Farley. Images of the fighting, the destruction, and the dead, race back into my mind. I remember my fear, my grief. And running. I remember reaching the forest and knowing I could not stop until I was safe. I ran until my legs gave way and I collapsed on the grass. Sleep must have claimed me instantly.

  The morning is cold. Not as cold as in winter, when snow blankets the ground, nestles in the trees and weighs down the roofs of the town. But it is cold all the same. Wrapping my arms around myself I stand up and move around, stamping my feet to try and get some warmth into my body.

  I don’t know how far I am from Farley, or even if I’m safe here. But I will need water and food soon, and some way to keep warm and dry during the night. The best hope I have is to find Jerym or Rose or any of the others. But then… I don’t even know if anyone else is alive. That is a thought I can’t bear to contemplate, so I push it aside and set off, hoping to find my friends.

  The forest is never totally quiet. It is alive, after all. There are always animals moving about, disturbing grass or twigs or leaves. Even if only small ones like lizards or snakes, birds or insects – there is always something moving. And then there is the wind. It only takes a gentle breeze to rustle the leaves or create a whistle of its own.

  But today the forest is quiet. The only sound I can hear is the crunching of leaves under my feet. Just like the survivors of Farley – if there are any - the animals must have been scared off by the soldiers.

  The soldiers. Part of Emperor Tigranik’s all-conquering army, the Peace Bringers. It’s an unusual name for an invading army, but when you are winning, like Tigranik is, you can call your army whatever you want. Where did they come from? I knew of the rumours that Tigranik wanted to continue his conquests and attack Hammel, our nation, but I thought they were only that. Rumours. I’d heard nothing of the approach of the army or of other towns or villages being attacked elsewhere in Hammel. But then, Farley was about as far north as you could go - unless you wanted to live in swamp and marshland inhabited by disease-ridden insects. It’s not really a surprise that we hadn’t heard of the advance of his army. We’re usually the last to find out anything.

  As far as I knew though, Tolos, the capital of Hammel, was still untouched. Why would Tigranik send his army to a remote town in the north before attacking the capital? Was he trying to strangle Hammel into submission before attacking Tolos?

  Tolos. Where my father is. Or at least where I hope he still is. He left us three months ago when we heard the rumours of Tigranik’s army advancing north through Naren, our southern neighbour. It was assumed that if the emperor’s army continued north into Hammel, it would attack Tolos. My father had insisted that his duty was to defend his family, and his country, and he could do that best by going east to Tolos and enlisting in the army. Or so he said. But since then there had been nothing. No news of the army’s whereabouts – nothing.

  My father was one of the leaders in our town. He ended many arguments and even some long-standing feuds simply with the wisdom of his words. Once, he had even gathered the men of the town and directed them quickly when a raging fire threatened to engulf all of Farley. He had a way with people and they always listened to him. But as a soldier? I have worried about him every day since he left. He is a businessman, a trader in wines, oils, cloths, and almost anything else valued by the people of Farley. But he is not a warrior, and I fear for him dreadfully. Is he unharmed? Have the other soldiers made a mockery of him? Is he even still alive?

  There are so many questions – about my father, Tigranik, Tolos, my friends. And I don’t have the answer to a single one of them.

  After hours of mindless wandering, my stomach reminds me that I haven’t eaten since yesterday. Having lived all my life on the edge of the forest I know what berries and fruits are safe to eat. Picking at them as I find them doesn’t do much to relieve my hunger, though their juice does give me a small amount of liquid. I need something more substantial.

  A couple of years ago, Jerym and the other boys thought it would be fun to try and catch a wild deer. It was the first time they allowed me to follow along with them – I think they wanted me to be impressed by their daring. I watched as they tried, very badly, to catch a deer with their bare hands. None of them could get within twenty feet of the deer before it smelled them, or heard them, and ran off. When they finally decided to work together and chase the deer towards the other boys, the deer just crashed right through them. Once Jerym was able to jump onto the deer’s back, but he was quickly shaken off and fell hard to the ground.

  Hiding my laughter, I told them all to wait behind a large tree nearby. And watch. I don’t know what made me do it – maybe I wanted to show up the boys who wouldn’t usually let me play with them. But I climbed a tree then jumped across to the branch of the next. Wild berries grew in a bush at the base of that tree, so I sat down and waited.

  It wasn’t long until a deer came past to munch on the berries. Quietly and slowly I walked out along the branch until I was right above the deer. I could see Jerym, Dain and the other boys watching me. Holding my breath, I waited until the deer had its head down, tearing some berries off the bush. Then I jumped.

  I landed next to the deer with my arm on its back. It tried to bolt away but I was quicker and wrapped my other arm around it and held on tight. Then it started kicking out, but I held on until the boys came running over, awed at my catch. The deer slipped out of my hands, but I pretended as though I’d let it go. The boys never knew otherwise. I repeated the same trick and caught a few other animals, just to prove that I could. But the boys quickly grew bored – or frustrated that they couldn’t catch anything themselves - and moved onto another game. But from then on, I was accepted and free to go and play with them whenever I wanted.

  I smile at the memory. Yes, I know how to catch a wild animal. But that had always been for fun, not for food. The thought of catching something to kill and eat makes my stomach churn.

  As much as I need food, I need water more. After running for so long yesterday, mostly through thick smoke, my mouth is parched and my throat hurts to swallow. All I have had to drink since the attack was the pitcher of water in Old Bor Crane’s bar. I figure my best bet is to find some water, and the best way to do that is to climb. Being smaller than the other girls, and not as strong in most ways, I was as surprised as anyone to discover that I could climb. Maybe having less w
eight to lift made it easier. Whatever the reason, I loved climbing – probably because I was good at it. So now I climb the tallest tree I can find to see if there is a source of water nearby. Finding a solid branch, I sit down to take stock of my surroundings.

  There is no visible movement on the ground, nothing to indicate any roving or foraging game. All around me are trees, bushes, and thick grass. Disappointingly, I can’t see any puddles of water where I can drink.

  A gentle breeze blows through the tops of the trees, rustling the leaves, and immediately my ears prick up. Was that sound a voice? Is someone nearby? There is silence again as the breeze dies down. I wait for the wind to pick up once more, to carry whatever sound it was back to my ears. There it is again! It is coming from my left – and it is a human voice. My heart beats faster – I hope it is the voice of someone I know. But then a sudden fear grips me - it could also be a scout from Tigranik’s army.

  I strain my eyes, searching through the trees, but I can’t see anything. I’m tempted to climb down and find out who it is, but I don’t want to walk into a camp full of Peace Bringers. Then I hear the faint sound of laugher, and it sounds like the voice of a girl. Feeling slightly reassured I make up my mind and climb down to investigate.