by Leah Putz
The woman continued to scream, fighting vehemently against the soldiers that held her back. They laughed, pushing her into the river after forcing her to watch her son be murdered. The water rushed and swirled, the current pulling her under immediately. Even the strongest swimmer would not survive. I closed my eyes tightly and clenched my jaw, the rage flowing through me so strong it was all I could do to contain it. This was the kind of thing that would happen in Doctsland should we fail. Determination hardened in me. We have to succeed.
Siofra waited until we could no longer see or hear the soldiers to speak, but she kept her voice quiet. “We need to keep moving. Lisalya, can you tell if they’re moving away from us?”
Lisalya sniffled, wiping her nose with the back of her hand, and choked on her words as she answered. “They’ve moved away. I can no longer sense them.”
Siofra gave her a comforting squeeze as she nodded. “Okay. Let’s go.”
Trying to keep the image of the boy and the sound of his mother’s screams out of my head, I marched. We moved for hours, but the jungle didn’t appear to change and it felt as though we were making no progress. If it hadn’t been for the river, I would have thought we were going in circles. Light was failing, and I knew we needed rest. It could be dangerous to try to move in the dark with no sense of where we were or where we were going. When we came to a small clearing, I called for a halt.
“Let’s sleep here tonight. We’ve crossed a lot of ground today, and there’s no sense in moving forward in the black of the night.”
The rest of the party agreed, and I sent off two members of the crew to hunt and find something to eat. “Be as swift and as quiet as you can be. And don’t stray too far,” I warned as they headed off.
By the time they returned Jion had a small fire going, and we were able to eat and rest for the night.
***
I rose as soon as the sun began to trickle over the horizon. The night had been restless, the events of the day playing out over and over in my head, and I was eager to begin moving again. Lisalya sat awake, poking at the fire, tears shining on her face. “Are you okay?” I asked, my voice raspy with sleep.
She shook her head. “Not really. I didn’t have time to put my walls up before…” She stopped, containing a sob that tried to escape. “And it’s been hard being so near to everyone for so long. I’m usually able to get some time to myself to repair my energy. My head is killing me.”
I hung my head. “I’m sorry. I wish we hadn’t witnessed what we saw yesterday. Or I wish we would have been able to do something about it. My hope is we will find somewhere to make a more permanent base today. Then we can build you a shelter separate from the rest of the camp to give you the isolation that you need.”
It seemed luck was finally on our side for the first time since the wreck because my hope came true. We were only a few hours into our third march when Lisalya suddenly stopped. “I can sense someone. More than one someone. A village, I think. Not far from here.”
“Here would be as good a place as any to set up a camp, even if it be a temporary one depending on where we find our location to be. There’s a slight clearing here, it’s close enough to the river but hidden by that thicket of trees,” Jion said, surveying the surroundings in a circle. “There’s not much further we can go today anyway, it’s getting dark already.”
“Okay, let’s get started then,” Siofra said. “The sooner it is, the sooner we can rest for a while before we begin our first mission. Jion, will you start working on a small shelter? We’ll need to go hunting as well.”
“What can I help with? I’m not much for hunting, but I can start a fire easy enough. We often use them in my grandmother’s healing rituals,” Lisalya said.
“As soon as Jion is finished with the shelter he and I are going hunting. If you could start a fire that would be fantastic,” Siofra replied.
Lisalya grinned. “Absolutely. I’m on it.” She immediately sat in the center of the clearing and began to dig out a makeshift fire pit.
Wanting to help in some way, I asked. “Is there anything I can grab for you, to help?”
“Yes, actually. We need a large source of dry materials, leaves, branches, anything really.”
Siofra and I both nodded, and she turned and headed out into the trees to search. I began to gather as much as I could in the area surrounding me and piled it all into the pit as Lisalya grabbed a couple of rocks that looked sharp enough to make a spark and set to work.
By the time Siofra came back with her arms full of crisping leaves and sticks, the pile was smoking.
“Great,” Lisalya said as she set down her load. “Now we just need to blow on the embers and slowly keep adding more leaves and twigs.”
Siofra left to assist Jion on his hunt, leaving Lisalya and me in the center of the camp together.
“Now what?” I asked, once the fire began to pick up.
“Now we need to keep it going. Rather than the smaller sticks and twigs, we need large pieces of wood. But they still need to be dry,” Lisalya explained.
“Okay, I’ve got it,” I said, rushing back out.
When Jion and Siofra returned from their hunt with a steer on their backs, the fire was roaring and large. Once they finished skinning their kill, they began to place it over the blaze to cook. “Dinner is nearly served. Thank you for making the fire,” Jion said, smiling as he rotated one of the cooking pieces of meat.
“Thank you for hunting to feed us all,” I replied. “And the fire was a joint effort, though Lisalya did most of the work. Even Siofra helped a bit before she left with you.”
“Ah, she’s good at something besides fighting? Good to know.” He laughed as she lightly punched his shoulder.
“I’m good at plenty of other things!” she exclaimed.
“Oh, damn, you’re right, I’m sorry. You’re also good at planning. Meticulous, precise, infuriating planning.”
“Speaking of planning,” I said. “We need to make a plan for tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” Lisalya asked, glancing at the sky, which was already beginning to dim with the setting of the sun. “Already? But we just got here, and we’ve been walking for two days. Don’t we need to give everybody some time to rest first?”
I sighed and stared into the fire. “I know. But we can’t afford to waste any time.”
Lisalya rolled her eyes. Typically I would have been shocked by such treatment as the Prince, but I was beginning to expect it from her. She really hates me, I thought, and wondered why that caused such a strange pang in my gut.
“We were just in a shipwreck for god’s sake. I know we’re on a tight timeline but what is one day? One day can’t set us back that much,” she replied.
“It can set us back enough,” I said firmly, and she blanched at the harshness of my tone. Feeling guilty, I tried to lighten it as much as possible given the nature of the topic. “And it’s not up for debate. So,” I turned towards Siofra. “We need to make a plan for the morning.”
“Yes, I came up with some plans while we were sailing,” Siofra immediately launched into her plans. “We’ll need Lisalya to help us locate where the rebels may be. Lis, how did you know how to locate Viktor in the water?”
Lisalya shrugged her narrow shoulders. “I’ve done it before, though only once. A few years ago, when I was around sixteen, my father was injured while hunting alone. When he didn’t come home, we knew something was wrong. It was easier with him, even though I was less experienced, because I am so accustomed to him and his mind. I’ve known it all my life. I just closed my eyes and focused on him as much as I could until I found him. I did the same with Viktor last night.”
I gazed at her, amazed at the abilities she had that I simply could not comprehend. Siofra continued, seemingly unfazed in her determination to craft a foolproof plan. “Do you think you can do that again, but focusing on a feeling rather than a person?”
Lisalya’s dark eyebrows scrunched together in thought for a moment b
efore she nodded. “Yes, I think I can.”
“Great,” Siofra said, grinning. “Then I think we should start with those closest to us, we can begin to spread out from there once we have more people on our side. We can operate from here as a base camp, provided it’s close enough to Green Marsh to not throw off the timeline of our original plan too much.” Jion and I nodded, encouraging Sifora to continue. “I think we should start with a small crew. If we can manage that while still being safe. Lisalya, Prince Viktor, Jion, and I should go out first, leaving the rest of the crew behind. That way, they can keep working on building and improving the shelter. We’ll be growing in number, so we need to make sure we have adequate space at the camp, including multiple shelters. We should also have them build some lookout stations. One close to the beach, at least, to make sure we stay hidden.”
I nodded. “I think the lookout spots should be a top priority. If we’re found by the wrong people, the whole thing will have been for naught.”
Jion spoke up. “Agreed. We should also build a cellar of some sort, something to keep our food in to try to make it last. We don’t have much now due to the wreck, but hopefully as our party grows we can have a dedicated group of hunters to make sure we all have enough to eat. We need to make sure we build up and maintain a decent supply of food stores.”
“Absolutely. Siofra, anything we’re missing? What time should we head out?”
“As soon as we have daylight. Until we gain more of a sense of the land and how to get around, we should make sure we’re back to camp before dark. That will help prevent any of us getting lost. We don’t know how much time we may need to convince people to join our cause, leaving early will ensure we have as much time as daylight allows. We’ll need to work out how far we’ll have to travel…”
“Lisalya?” I said, and she turned to face me. “That’s where you come in.”
“I really think we should just give people a day to rest. We’re all exhausted.”
“I’m sorry, but it doesn’t matter what you think. This is what’s happening,” I said, growing frustrated with her inability to understand how tight of a timeline we were on. “Yes we’re all exhausted, but our lives, and the lives of our countrymen back home in Doctsland, and our freedom, are all at stake. If we don’t win this war, the people at home that we love could end up like that boy we saw yesterday.”
“Viktor, calm down,” Siofra said. “Arguing isn’t going to help anything, and if we all push too hard and burn out that could jeopardize the mission just as much as losing a day could.”
I huffed, feeling irritated and antsy. Now that we were here, I wanted so badly to rush out at once and try to find people, it was hard to see reason in any other course of action. Even waiting one night was difficult, but I suddenly remembered the brief conversation Siofra, Jion, and I had had onboard regarding Lisalya’s condition due to her powers.
“One day,” I said, clenching my teeth as I unhappily agreed. “We will wait one day. Tomorrow, can you please try to find someone who may be sympathetic to our cause, so we can approach them come the next morning? We will need to iron out all plan details in advance so we can make an early start.”
Pursing her lips, she nodded.
I stood, wanting to busy myself. “Let’s get this camp finished up so we can go to bed.” I moved away from the area of the fire and began working with Jion, drawing up a cursory camp layout in some dirt, including a cabin for myself, a large shelter for the current crew, and a separate shelter for Lisalya.
“Do you think that will help, with her migraines?” I asked Siofra, remembering what she said about remaining separate from other people.
Siofra nodded. “Yes, it will.” Without another word, we got to work, determined to finish the build before the setting of the sun.
We made Lisalya’s shelter first, and as soon I was finished I approached her, trying to be delicate as I wasn’t sure if she was still angry with me. “Lisalya, your shelter is ready. It’s still within the confines of the protected area of the camp, but a bit separated from where the rest of us are. I’m not sure if that will help you, or how much, but I hoped it may be somewhat of a relief.”
Surprise washed over her face. “Thank you,” she said, standing from her place still near the fire. “It will help, and I very much appreciate the thought and effort.” I merely gave her a small smile in response and led her to her quarters. It was only twenty or thirty feet away from the main camp, and the size was drastically different than the central shelter Jion was working on, which would be made to house approximately twenty people. Though the distance wasn’t great, I hoped it would ease her mind.
“Thank you,” she said again. “This is perfect.”
“You’re welcome,” I replied. “I’ll send Siofra to wake you tomorrow. Have a good night.”
I spent the rest of the evening completing the camp with the crew, and by the time the sun set I felt like I was on the verge of collapsing with exhaustion. After entering the shelter, I collapsed on the bed made of wood and leaves and fell asleep immediately.
Chapter Nine
Viktor
Lisalya and Siofra were already awake and having breakfast near the fire when I woke and exited my cabin the next morning. I strolled up to ask if Lisalya’s shelter had worked, only to find they were in the middle of a conversation.
“We’ll have to make more waterskins,” Siofra said.
“Make them? How?”
Jion hopped into the conversation as we resumed our places beside the fire. “You must not have much experience hunting.”
She glanced at him quizzically. “Not really, no. What does that have to do with making water skins?”
“It’s simple actually,” I said, poking the fire with a long stick and gazing into the flames. “We’ve already accomplished the most difficult part, which is finding and securing the kill. Jion and Siofra have also already skinned it, and Bear and Bird.” I gestured to two of the men we had traveled on the ship with “stripped it of the hair and fat while we were preparing the meat for dinner. So, frankly more than half the work is done. Do you see how the skin is stretched over there?” I gestured behind me, where the hide had been stretched and secured between two trees.
Two more members of the crew, ones I hadn’t become particularly familiar with on the journey, were running large sticks back and forth across the skin.
I continued. “That’s going to soften it, make it pliable. Once that’s done, we’ll be able to sew it into water skins. We should get at least three or four out of that one deer. We’ll continue the process with each kill until we’ve replaced all the bags, water skins, and clothing we lost in the wreck. You can pretty much make anything out of animal skin.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t know. It’s a very common practice in Doctsland, especially in the countryside,” Jion said.
Lisalya shrugged. “We don’t really have to do anything like that. We spend most of our time making medicines and performing healings. As payment, those we help provide us with goods and food. What we don’t receive as payment, my father hunts and provides. I’m always helping Grandmother, so I haven’t learned his craft from him.”
“I suppose that makes sense. I’m sure you’ll learn a fair share of new skills and crafts throughout our journey. If you ever want a lesson, you need only ask one of us. Surely we’d be happy to teach you,” Jion replied.
We continued doing necessary tasks around the camp until it was close to dinner time, then I decided it was time to focus on the most important task at hand. I gathered Jion, Siofra, and Lisalya, and we sat together around the fire, ready to plan for the next day’s mission.
“Lisalya, are you ready?” Siofra asked gently as Lisalya prepared to try to locate our first targets. Lisalya nodded before squeezing her eyes shut. Several moments passed as I gazed intently on her face, trying hopefully to locate any signal of success.
“Are you alright?” I asked, my concern evident in my voice when she winced.<
br />
“I’m fine,” she replied tersely, not opening her eyes.
Several minutes passed in silence, and I was beginning to worry when she finally spoke again. “I can pinpoint the village I mentioned yesterday,” she said. “Whether they may be with us remains to be seen.”
“How far?” Jion asked.
She shook her head. “I’m not sure yet. Give me a minute.” Shortly thereafter a small smile formed on her lips. “They are with us,” she murmured, and relief mingled with hope flooded over me. “And not far away. Within a mile, though I can’t tell the distance exactly.”
“Can you tell what direction?” Jion asked.
“East,” she said. “To our left.”
“Great,” Jion said. “That should be enough information, don’t you think, Vik?”
I hummed my assent, and Lisalya blinked her eyes open. “If you need nothing more, I’m going to put my walls back up.”
I nodded. “Go ahead. We have all that we need.” Just as she was about to close her eyes to do so, I spoke again. “And Lisalya,” I said. “Thank you.” I could only hope my words could help to express the depth of the gratitude I felt.
She gave me a single nod in answer before closing her eyes. When she re-opened them, she stared into the fire for a moment before speaking. “I need some water,” she said. “And then to go to sleep.”
I nodded and stood. “There’s a stream nearby; we found it when we were scouting the area. It’s fresh water, nice and cold, clean as well. Better than the river. This way.”
“Thank you,” she said, standing and following me.
“Are you alright?” I asked as we strolled through the wilderness. I kept my eyes down, staring at my feet and trying to see the ground through the darkness to avoid tripping on a root or fallen branch.
“I’m exhausted,” she replied. “And I’m expecting a migraine at any second. It’s difficult, taxing, maintaining all these walls all the time. Breaking them down and building them back up over and over. I’m not used to it. Growing up I accepted that most everyone knew of me and my abilities, as well as the power of our family, but that has never made it any easier for me to be around people.”
