He looked down at it in something close to surprise or amusement. “I’ll be damned…” He whispered weakly.
Two more arrows struck home and he toppled backwards, falling still.
Tandy started screaming. She grabbed for his arm to pull him to cover, but she couldn’t reach him. Arrows started striking around her face and she was forced to retreat back a few yards, to the cover of the trees.
She ran her hands through her hair in panic, unsure of what to do.
If Kobb wasn’t already dead, he soon would be. And Tzadok was god knew where, probably also on the verge of death.
In front of her, the dark-haired woman was covered in Kobb’s blood and started to drag him behind a fallen tree, despite the danger of getting hit herself. The log didn’t provide them much protection, but given the circumstances, it was the best they were going to do. The woman was visibly shaking.
Okay… Okay, she needed to get to Kobb, stop the bleeding, and then get to Tzadok. But she had to find a way to get rid of the Coastal warriors first, or she’d be shot as well.
Tandy’s mind raced, trying to think of a solution… She could do this… Everything in the world had a solution, it was just a matter of carefully considering it...
And then the most unexpected solution imaginable appeared as if by magic or miracle.
Tandy’s head whipped to the right, focusing on the trail where Stendec was still casually leading his horse through the woods. Somehow they had either caught up with him because he was taking the main road while they were taking a game trail shortcut, or else the man had been drawn to the sounds of battle. Either way, Tandy had never been gladder to see a soulless mercenary before.
The Ghostmaker paused in his tracks, apparently trying to decide how he should react to her presence in his path. “You a highwayman now?” He asked her in his emotionless soft gravelly whisper. “If this is a robbery, I admire your self-confidence, girl.”
“I need your help!” She exclaimed, panic in her tone. She pointed over her shoulder. “They are going to kill them!”
Stendec looked through the trees at where Kobb was lying. “And?” He shook his head. “You’re wasting your time. His world is done.” He started walking again, tipping his hat to her. “Ma’am.”
“And they’re going to kill Tzadok!” She yelled, her temper snapping. “I’m going to help Tzadok and I won’t let his uncle die! Which means you’re going to help us!”
The Ghostmaker didn’t stop his travels, apparently thinking that wasn’t even worthy of a reply.
Tandy stalked after him. “Don’t you walk away from me, you son-of-a-bitch!” She pointed at the dead men piled on his horse. “I know you’re an unfeeling killer. But Kobb is a good man! He doesn’t deserve this!”
Stendec stopped in his tracks. “Lady, who do you think hired me to kill the men from the Thunder Forest?” He looked pointedly in Kobb’s direction. “You need to wake up and stop living in a dream world. There are no good people anymore. Not the Saltmen and least of all The Thirty-Two Hundred. Everyone is an asshole. Selfish, violent, envious assholes. And we’re creating the world we deserve.” He started walking again. “Accept that and start profiting from it.”
Tandy ran her hands through her hair again, at a loss. She couldn’t exactly intimidate him into helping her. And he wouldn’t do it because it was the right thing to do. Which left only…
“I can pay you!” She promised, recognizing the fact that she had no money, even as she made the offer.
He stopped walking, but didn’t turn around. “I’m listening.”
“I don’t have the money at the moment, but…”
He started walking again.
Tandy knew she had about three more minutes before the archers on the hill decided to move forward to finish off Kobb and the dark-haired woman. To say nothing of Tzadok, who might very well be dead at the moment.
Why was it so difficult to hire killers? Why were they so untrusting? The Coastal People had hired a bunch of them with…
The realization formed in her mind and she was instantly moving forward. She practically pushed Stendec out of the way, barreling through the underbrush towards the sounds of battle. She stuck to the trees, working her way around the clearing which was covered by the archers. They were between Tandy and where Tzadok was though, which made matters more complicated.
Rationally, she recognized the fact that she should be more cautious, but there simply wasn’t time. She was dead either way if this didn’t work, so it didn’t really matter. Speed was all that was important at the moment.
When she started seeing bodies, she knew she’d come to the right place. In front of her, Tzadok was locked in combat with two very large men.
They were the men that Aix had hired to kill Tzadok. Which meant that they had been paid. And if they’d been paid, they would undoubtedly still have their gold on them…
Her eyes fell to the sack of gold which was tied to the belt of one of the attackers.
Tandy ran forward to grab it. The man moved at the last second, so she improvised by jumping onto his back. He tossed her off a moment later, but Tandy grabbed the purse before she hit the ground and she was already sprinting towards the trees again by the time he tried to stop her.
The man was big. Slow. And currently fighting Tzadok. There was no way he’d catch her. The Wastelanders might have an advantage in a fight, but Tandy’s life had taught her how to run fast and avoid crazy people who were trying to kill her. She could move very quickly when she wanted to. She had a lot of practice at it.
“You’re stealing from him!?!” Tzadok cried after her in amazement. “Now!?!”
Tandy ignored that.
She arrived back at the road, to find that she’d accomplished the entire mission in very little time. Stendec had barely moved. Or perhaps he had waited for her? She wasn’t sure and didn’t care. She simply tossed the sack of coins to him and pointed to the archers on the hill. “I need you to kill those men and the two attacking Tzadok.”
The Ghostmaker tested the weight of the bag in his hand. “You’re light.” He informed her calmly, barely paying attention. “Two. This will pay for two, not five.”
“Four.” She demanded.
“Two.” He repeated.
“Three.” She countered. “You know that’s worth three men. Death is cheap. And you could kill them in the time it would take to argue with me. Plus, The Lord of Salt would owe you a favor.”
He considered that for a moment, then nodded. “Three.”
Tandy paused to think the matter over. Ultimately, the archers were the most pressing concern. She trusted that Tzadok could kill the two other men on his own. She pointed across the clearing to where the archers were stationed in the trees. “Them.”
Stendec moved in one fluid motion, pulling his crossbow and firing it at the first of the men, somehow spotting his shadow lurking in the bushes. The bolt struck home and a Coastal Man toppled from the tree line. The Ghostmaker took a step closer and fired to the man’s right, sending another attacker falling from a tree and down the incline, with an arrow through his eye. “Congratulations.” Stendec turned back to the road. “Your first murders. Those men are dead. You killed them.” He refocused on her, his eyes hidden by the huge brim of his hat. “How do you feel now, schoolteacher?”
Tandy looked at the dead men and frowned slightly. “I paid you for three.” She reminded him matter-of-factly.
Stendec didn’t say anything for a moment. “You really do belong with the Saltmen, don’t you?” He started shuffling down the path again. “Like I said: there are no good people anymore. Not even schoolteachers.”
Tandy raised her voice. “You owe me one more, Ghostmaker!” She started stalking after him. “We had a deal!”
He calmly extended his arm and fired off the crossbow again, without looking, killing the last archer, despite the fact Tandy hadn’t even seen the man in the darkness.
And then Stendec quietly disappeared d
own the path, into the shadows.
On the other side of the clearing, Tzadok and the two larger men came tumbling down the rocky hill, over the bodies of the newly slain archers.
Tzadok grabbed one of his opponents and pushed him backwards, lifting him up off the ground and slamming him into a tree. A shattered tree limb went right through the man’s chest, keeping him in place like a butterfly pinned in a scientific display, while his legs dangled in the breeze.
The second man moved to attack, but Tzadok punched him in the throat with a huge right hand. The man made a horrible gasping sound as he tried to get air through his collapsed windpipe, falling to his knees. Tzadok grabbed him by his hair, braced one of his feet on the man’s chest. “Tell Hawser that this is what happens when you mouth off to my woman!” He screamed into the man’s face, then tore the man’s lower jaw from his skull with one solid pull. “Your mouth gets ripped the fuck off!”
The man made a truly nightmarish sound as blood and air and a scream escaped the remains of his mouth and collapsed windpipe, his tongue now lolling free against his neck.
Tzadok ignored the noise of the man’s final moments, and tossed the gruesome jaw aside in disinterest. He turned to look at her and his face lit up in relief at seeing that she was unhurt. Then a moment later, he remembered that he was covered in blood and had just torn off a piece of someone’s face. He swore and turned away from her, worried that she’d be afraid.
But Tandy had bigger problems at the moment. She raced forward to check on Kobb, who didn’t look good at all. In fact… he looked dead, crumpled behind the log, his head resting on the dark-haired woman’s lap.
“Uncle, let’s get…” Tzadok began, then he saw Kobb’s injuries and his face went completely pale, despite the blood dripping down it. “…Uncle?” He whispered weakly.
****
Tandy forced the door to the abandoned shack open and rushed inside. She swept her arm across the dilapidated table and started searching for candles. “There! Put him there!”
Tzadok staggered through the door, carrying his uncle, despite the fact that they weighed about the same.
Given that the area of the ambush was still at risk of Coastal Person attack, they had been forced to make their way down the riverbed until they reached some sort of shelter. Kobb was in no condition to walk for long, which meant that Tzadok had been forced to carry him for almost 2 miles over uneven ground, and worse, it meant that Kobb’s wounds were still untreated.
He was going to die. She was pretty sure of it now.
Tzadok all but dropped Kobb onto the table, his astonishing strength finally giving out. “Okay, we’re here.” He told the other man. “We made it.”
“Oh, good...” Kobb got out weakly, his voice soft and slurred. He turned his head to look at the room. “Odd for a warrior to die at home. Even… if it’s not his own…”
“You’re not going to die.” Tzadok assured him, obviously trying to sound reassuring, but the hitch in his tone was audible.
He knew Kobb was dying too.
“It’s okay.” Kobb assured him, recognizing the effort. He patted his nephew’s cheek. “I’ve killed many who had worse deaths than this.” He nodded, drifting off. “I’m… almost… disappointed…” Then he fell silent.
“Uncle?” Tzadok asked, his voice breaking. “Uncle!”
“He’s not dead,” Tandy assured him quickly, “he just passed out.” She finished lighting the candle. “Hey!” She moved to slap Kobb’s face. “Don’t fall asleep! Kobb!” She hit him again. “Don’t fall asleep!”
His eyes opened again. “Ow.” He winced at the blow. “Don’t I have enough prob…” He stopped speaking, his eyes cutting around the room in sudden panic. “Where’s the girl?”
The woman in question was currently sitting against the wall, shaking and covered in his blood. She was staring at nothing, eyes wide, face ghostly pale. “
Tandy ignored the babbling. “She’s fine.” She assured him, trying to yank Kobb’s robe from his body so that she could see the wounds. The action was made more difficult by the fact that the three arrows were still sticking out of his chest. “She’s right over there.”
Tzadok moved his hand to the shaft of one of the arrows, about to yank it free.
“No!” She shouted. “Don’t do that!” She pushed him away. “You do that and he’ll die right now. You’ll lose the arrowhead in his chest!”
Tzadok pulled back so quickly he stumbled.
“I’m… I’m sorry.” She ran a hand through her hair, trying to ignore the fact her forehead was now streaked with Kobb’s blood. “My mother… she… she taught healing at the Academy, and...”
Kobb smiled humorlessly and tried to say something, but wasn’t able. It came out as a weak rasping gasp.
Tzadok swore, like the sound caused him physical pain. He started pacing around the room, giving her space to work.
Tandy surveyed the damage. Okay… okay, he’d been hit three times in the chest. She ran her hand along his mouth, but found no blood. Which meant he hadn’t pierced a lung. Which was good. And none of the wounds were to the stomach, which would have certainly been fatal.
Medical care in The Wasteland seemed to consist mostly of alcohol and just stubbornly refusing to die. Their whole philosophy was apparently that if you died, you’d been proven too weak to live. No matter the damage, you walked it off.
Which meant that Tandy was the best option right now. She bit her lower lip, trying to remember her mother’s lessons…
She’d have to cut him open. Trace the shaft down into his chest with her finger until she found the arrowhead, then try to remove it. She needed to remove all of the point or Kobb was dead either way. It would continue to do damage in his chest, if the infection didn’t kill him first. She needed to…
“
Unfortunately, that just gave Tzadok an easy target for his anger and fear. “This is your fault!” He yelled at the woman. “YOU did this! He’d be FINE right now if it weren’t for you!”
The woman ignored him, continuing to stare at a random point on the wall. “<…why would he do that?>” She asked again, obviously in shock.
“If he dies, so do you.” Tzadok vowed darkly. “I swear to Chox and all the spirits of the underworld, I will…”
“That’s not helping.” Tandy bit out, trying to concentrate.
“He went through my entire life, not so much as ever stubbing his toe! Not a fucking scratch!” He gestured at the woman. “A few weeks with that she-bitch and…”
Tandy rounded on him, her temper snapping. “Do you want me to concentrate on saving him or do you want me to concentrate on speaking Wastelandi, Tzadok? Because it’s really one or the other right now.” She shook her head. “If you’re going to stay, you need to grow the fuck up and stop whining!” The words were harsher than she’d intended and she instantly regretted them. “I’m… I’m sorry.” She got out, trying not to sob. “I’m just… I’m just…” She was about to lose it. “This is within my skill set.” She told him softly, pointing at Kobb. “I can save this man.”
“Please do.” Tzadok whispered, then paused for a moment. “If you can’t… it’s not your fault.” He reassured her, recognizing that she was on the verge of a breakdown. “If you can’t, no one could, Tandrea. Don’t take the blame for life and death. That’s not your burden.”
“I can do this.” She repeated, more for herself than anyone. “I know I can…” She looked down at Kobb, focusing on her work. “Find a knife or a blade of some kind.” She told Tzadok. “Fast as you can.”
“There’s not much here.” He informed her, beginning to tear the decrepit room apart. “I don’t…”
The dark-haired woman held out her knife to Tandy, her hand shaking.
Tandy looked down at the weapon, then up at the woman. Kobb’s b
lood was still all over her face, but tears were beginning to cut paths through it. “
Tandy blinked in surprise, but didn’t have time to think about it. She grabbed the weapon and immediately started her first incision…
Chapter Seventeen:
One Thing Well or Several Things Poorly
Three Weeks Later
“He was the best man I’ve ever known and the representation of everything I ever hoped to one day become.” Tzadok reminisced aloud, looking at his uncle’s still form. “I still can’t believe that this is happening. It’s like… a horrible dream I can’t wake from.”
“I know.” Tandrea touched his arm in comfort. “But it’ll be okay.”
“I don’t see how.” He shook his head sadly. “This is just…” He trailed off.
“This is an opportunity for growth.” She promised. “I know it seems bad now, but you’ll look back and realize that all of this was for the best.”
“I seriously doubt that.”
“It’s just meditation, Nephew.” Kobb reminded him, turning his head to look at him. “It’s not like she’s asking me to torture you.”
Tzadok made a disbelieving sound, utterly unconvinced by that reasoning. “It’s not the ‘me’ part of this which causes me to feel embarrassed for you, Uncle.”
His eyes slid over to the dark-haired woman, who had decided to join them for this lesson. Tzadok wasn’t sure why. Her presence was the very reason why most of The Wasteland was stressed in the first place.
They were still traveling beyond the western edge of his lands, trying to make it far enough south to reach the pass through the mountains and back onto The Great Nothing. At the moment, they were housed in an abandoned village which had formally belonged to the River People clan, before they had all been killed in one of his mother’s endless wars.
It was slow going though, since his uncle’s stitches had only just been removed the week before. Tandrea assured him that Kobb was a remarkably fast healer, but it still seemed to him that their journey home was taking an inordinately long time.
Captive of a Fairytale Barbarian Page 35
