Melcorka Of Alba

by Malcolm Archibald

Kosala grunted. 'There are only two of us and that thing was designed for at least six. We should have kept some of the Thiruzhas to help us. See how they like being slaves for a change'

  'Too late now.' Melcorka took hold of the closest lever. 'Come on, Kosala.' She pulled, with no effect. The drum did not shift.

  'Jump on it,' Kosala suggested.

  That did not work, either. The drum remained static. Melcorka cursed. 'I'll not be beaten now,' she said. 'Try again.'

  They pulled, straining with effort but the lever remained stiffly static, the drum immobile. Melcorka swore loudly, in Gaelic, Tamil and Singhalese.

  Kosala smiled. 'You do have a temper, don't you, Melcorka? Life with you would be full of interest.'

  Before Melcorka could reply, something crashed against the door.

  'Kill them!' a score of voices shouted. 'Kill the Thiruzhas!'

  'Shiva has sent us help.' Melcorka said. 'Some of the slaves have arrived.'

  Kosala grinned. 'I hope we can convince them that we are not Thiruzhan.' He raised his voice to a shout. 'Who's there? We are the people who freed you!'

  'Kill the Thiruzhas!' The chant came from outside the door, accompanied by a steady crashing as the slaves tried to break down the door. 'Kill the Thiruzhas!'

  'I doubt if they will listen to reason,' Kosala said. 'Join me, Melcorka. Let them know we are on their side.' He shouted again: 'Kill the Thiruzhas!' Removing the beam, Kosala eased the door open a crack. 'Kill the Thiruzhas!'

  A horde of slaves poured in, some blood-smeared, some carrying swords or makeshift weapons, and all frantic-eyed with the lust for vengeance.

  'Welcome, lads and lassies,' Melcorka greeted them calmly. 'Could you lend a hand here, please?' She indicated the lever for the drum. 'We're trying to open the Seagate to let the Chola fleet in.'

  When the first man swung a stick at her, Melcorka dodged the blow and pressed her finger against the pressure point on his solar plexus. The man fell, temporarily paralysed.

  'Anybody care to help us?' Melcorka ensured she remained calm. 'The sooner the Seagate is open, the sooner the Chola fleet can come in.'

  Staring at their fallen companion, a group of slaves shuffled toward Melcorka.

  'Come on then.' Melcorka grabbed the nearest. 'Take hold here and push that lever as hard as you can.'

  The man stared at her through vacant, slave-dull eyes.

  'Just do as I say,' Melcorka demonstrated. 'We're trying to open the Seagate. Next, please!' She pushed a dozen into place, closed their hands around the levers and shouted: 'Now, on my word, push! Put your weight into it!'

  'I'll watch for any stray Thiruzha warriors.' Kosala positioned himself at the door, sword held across his chest.

  'Push!' Melcorka ordered again, leading by example. 'Come on, lads and lassies. If we don't open the gate, Rajaraja can't get in and we'll all be slaves forever! Push!'

  With the extra weight the slaves provided, the drum creaked an inch and a single link of the chain clicked into place.

  'Push!' Melcorka ordered. 'Come on, people!' She lifted herself off the ground, pushing as hard as she could. The chain creaked another link, and then another, until the slaves got the hang of the procedure, worked together and the drum began to roll faster.

  'That's it!' Melcorka said. 'We're getting there!'

  At that point, the Thiruzhas launched their counter attack.

  Chapter Twenty

  Melcorka heard the Thiruzha war cry, and the resonant crash of feet, followed by the crisp yell of disciplined orders. Kosala stepped aside as a flight of arrows hissed past him. Some found targets in the slaves that crowded the guardroom. Men screamed in pain or shouted in shock or sheer frustration, and a few hefted their makeshift weapons and rushed past Kosala toward the Thiruzhas.

  'Get the Seagate open!' Melcorka pulled a slave back. 'Keep turning the crank! Don't stop. Kosala and I will deal with the Thiruzhas.'

  Unsheathing Defender, Melcorka stepped toward the doorway. Kosala was already there, peering past the mob of slaves with his sword held across his chest.

  'How many?' Melcorka asked.

  'I can't tell.' Kosala flicked an arrow from the air with his sword. 'I can hear more coming up the stairs.'

  'Can you hold the door?' Melcorka glanced over her shoulder to where the slaves had stopped hauling on the levers. 'If you keep the guardroom secure, I'll get the Seagate open.'

  'I'll hold the door.' Kosala sounded as calm as if he was sitting inside his own house.

  'Good man!' Melcorka held his gaze for a second. 'I'm glad you're here, Kosala.' She saw the pleasure her few words gave him, touched his shoulder and returned inside the guardroom. 'Come on, people! Let's get this gate open!'

  The second she had left, the slaves had stopped working. Melcorka had to motivate them again, cajoling, encouraging, and leading by example. It was another few moments before the slaves were hauling again.

  'Come on!' Melcorka yelled as the drum inched around, chain-link by chain-link. 'Come on!'

  'Melcorka!' Kosala roared. 'Over here!'

  Melcorka glanced over her shoulder. Kosala was struggling against a press of Thiruzha warriors, fighting desperately. 'I'm coming!'

  She dashed across, in time to see Kosala dispose of a young warrior with a deft thrust to the throat. Five more Thiruzhas pressed forward, mouths open in loud yells. For a moment, Melcorka had to fight desperately, slashing, blocking and thrusting, and then there was silence save for the steady clanking of the chain, Kosala's harsh breathing and the moaning of the Thiruzha wounded.

  'You are a great warrior, Kosala,' Melcorka said, once she had got her breath back.

  'I just follow your example.' Kosala grinned across to her.

  'Listen.' Melcorka stood erect. 'Something's happening down there.' She stepped forward.

  'More Thiruzhas are coming up the stairs!' Kosala shouted, stepping to her side with his sword held low. 'You and me, Melcorka – it's you and me against all of Thiruzha!'

  Melcorka nodded as she heard the thunder of feet on the stairs. 'It sounds as if there are hundreds of them this time.'

  The Thiruzhas rampaged up the stairs in chain mail and iron helmets, with spears held horizontally and swords poised to kill. Most had a small, round shield on their left arm, and all looked hideously efficient. Leading them, shaded by the darkness, a tall man mounted the steps three at a time.

  'The man in front looks like a giant,' Kosala said.

  'Let me take him.' Melcorka tried to push in front, only for Kosala to block her.

  'No, Melcorka.' He grinned at her. 'Don't you realise yet that I am trying to impress you?'

  'You have no need to do that,' Melcorka said.

  'I must. I need to win your favour.' Kosala stood in a half-crouch. 'Come on, you dogs of Thiruzha! Come on, you followers of a rakshasa! Kosala is here!'

  Melcorka shook her head as the giant strode forward, laughing. 'Melcorka!' Kulothunga dropped the point of his sword. 'I thought there was still fighting up here?'

  'No,' Melcorka said. 'Kosala and I have things well in hand.' She glanced at the Singhalese warrior, who grinned at the praise. 'I presume the Seagate is open and our ships are in?'

  'You presume correctly,' Kulothunga said. 'I was first into the fort.'

  'I would not have thought anything else.' Melcorka kept her voice solemn. 'How many Chola ships are in?'

  'Five. Jasweer's Sharks and four more loolas, all packed with marines.' Kulothunga jerked a thumb to the men behind him. I'll lead them around the defences and get rid of the Thiruzhas.'

  'They're not fighting hard, Kulothunga. The defence has been lacklustre at best. I wonder if Bhim is laying another of his traps?'

  'Let him.' Kulothunga shrugged. 'I can defeat his army single-handed.'

  'There are catapults on the far battlements,' Kosala broke in. 'They can still cause damage to the Chola fleet. Maybe it would be better to get them first.'

  'No!' Jasweer pushed through the hard-faced
marines. 'I believe there's a boom blocking the North Channel. Our priority must be to destroy that, to clear passage for the rest of the fleet.'

  'The catapults and the boom are close together, Jasweer. We can destroy them all together.'

  'Show us, Kosala,' Jasweer ordered.

  Kosala glanced at Melcorka as if asking her permission. 'Are you coming with us, Melcorka?'

  'There is no need for the woman.' Kulothunga struck a dramatic pose. 'I am here.'

  'I'll come along anyway,' Melcorka said.

  Jasweer grunted. 'Don't get in my way, landswoman.'

  With Jasweer in charge and Kulothunga and the marines disposing of any defenders foolish enough to make a stand, Melcorka found she had little to do.

  'Burn these,' Jasweer ordered, and the marines set fire to the catapults. Jasweer watched, with her hands on her hips and her head tilted to one side. 'Good. Where is this giant bow I have heard so much about?'

  'Over there, Captain.' Kosala pointed.

  'Destroy it.' Jasweer watched as her marines dismantled the mechanism and set fire to the timber. She stood erect among the wreaths of smoke, a sea-woman equally at home on land. 'Find me the chain boom.'

  'Over here.' Kosala led her to a vast drum, around which was coiled a chain, each link of which could encompass a man's forearm.

  'It's completely unguarded.' Melcorka looked around. 'The captain of Kalipuram deserves a good hanging.'

  'Marines!' Jasweer shouted. 'Destroy this thing, detach the chain and throw it into the sea.'

  Melcorka nodded. 'That is best. It seems as if we have captured this fort.'

  'Thanks to you, Melcorka.' Kosala laid a hand on her arm. 'You are not like any woman I have met before.'

  Melcorka allowed Kosala's hand to rest where it was. 'I am what I am. It was Jasweer's Sharks who did the important part.' She noticed Kulothunga watching. 'And Kulothunga, I suppose. He has the makings of a reasonable warrior.'

  'I led the assault,' Kulothunga reminded her.

  Kosala smiled, shaking his head. He spoke only to Melcorka. 'You fascinate me,' Kosala said simply. 'I would do anything for you.'

  'No, Kosala,' Melcorka said. 'Thank you for the compliment, but there is no future between us, except in friendship or as fellow warriors.'

  'We would be a formidable combination,' Kosala said.

  'We are already a formidable combination.' Melcorka removed Kosala's hand. He did not resist.

  'If you ever grow tired of Bradan,' Kosala said, 'or if you find the rakshasas have killed him, I will be here for you.'

  'Thank you, Kosala.' Melcorka cleaned the blood from her blade. 'I cannot think of a better man.' She ignored Kulothunga's glare.

  'We have conquered Kalipuram,' Kosala said. 'Only because of you, Melcorka.'

  Melcorka looked around, frowning. The conquest of Kalipuram had been too easy. 'There is something wrong, Kosala. The garrison hardly fought. These were not the men who defended this island last time, or who defended Rajgana Fort. The Thiruzha are up to something.'

  'You may well be right.' Shoving Kosala aside, Kulothunga turned over the body of the last man he had killed. 'Look at this fellow. He must be fifty if he is a day, much too old to be a front-line warrior. While this man here…' he lifted the head of the next corpse, 'I doubt if he is twelve years old. He has not even started to grow his moustache yet.'

  'Why put second-rate soldiers in a frontline fort when you know the enemy is coming?' Melcorka asked.

  'You put your less valuable men in forward positions when you are preparing a trap,' Kosala said. 'The Thiruzhas have got something ugly in store for us.'

  'I agree,' Kulothunga said.

  Jasweer was breathing heavily. 'Our duty was to capture the fort and clear the way for the fleet. We did our duty.'

  'I came here to look for Bradan,' Melcorka said.

  'You don't need Bradan when I am here.' Kulothunga puffed out his chest. 'You need a warrior, not a man with a stick who is probably already dead.'

  'Bradan is a brave man,' Kosala said quietly. 'He does not deserve your insults.' He stepped in front of Melcorka as if to defend her.

  'When you children have stopped bickering,' Jasweer said quietly, 'you can perhaps welcome Rajaraja. He is approaching now.'

  Melcorka stamped her feet. 'Good,' she said. 'The sooner we get into the city, the better.'

  * * *

  Leaving a company of marines to garrison Kalipuram, Rajaraja anchored his fleet just out of range of the catapults of Kollchi. Ahead of them, the surviving Thiruzha vessels were pulled up on the horseshoe-shaped beach, while smoke drifted from the battlements as the defenders prepared to resist. A fitful breeze fluttered the blue and yellow flag of Thiruzha above the city.

  'I want your ideas and input again, gentlemen.' Rajaraja sat in a carved chair on the quarterdeck of his royal yacht. 'The enemy will expect us to attack. Do we launch our assault now, or starve them out?'

  'We should attack,' Kulothunga said. 'The longer we wait, the more warriors the Thiruzhas can gather and the more we will lose from disease and accidents. One swift, glorious assault will gain us the town.' He smiled. 'Think of the booty, gentlemen. Think of the women, think of the stories that will resonate for centuries.'

  'They will expect us to attack,' Rajaraja said. 'They do not know of our artillery. We will teach them how powerful we are and hope they surrender before we have the casualties an assault would bring.'

  'I need to search for Bradan before Dhraji kills him,' Melcorka said.

  Rajaraja shook his head. 'I am sorry, Melcorka. I appreciate your bravery in helping us capture Kalipuram, but I will not alter my strategy for one man.'

  Melcorka stiffened. 'I need to search for Bradan,' she repeated, without a change in her tone. 'Your strategy is your affair, Your Majesty. Up until now, our aims have coincided. Now, they diverge. Your priority is to capture the city. My priority is to rescue Bradan.'

  'By now,' Kulothunga said, 'Bradan might be dead. There could be nobody to rescue.'

  'I'll take that chance.'

  Kulothunga gave a mocking bow. 'I rather thought that you would.'

  Something in Kulothunga's voice made Melcorka shiver. She stared at him, wondering what he had in mind.

  Kulothunga openly gazed over Melcorka's body. 'As I have told you repeatedly, you deserve better than a man with a stick.'

  'If Dhraji had intended to kill Bradan, she would have torn him apart in front of me.' Melcorka ignored Kulothunga's advances. 'She is holding him prisoner for some reason of her own.'

  Kulothunga stroked his moustache, saying nothing.

  Why? Melcorka asked herself. Why would Dhraji hold Bradan prisoner? There was only one answer she could think of, and that gave her both hope and despair. Dhraji was genuinely attracted to Bradan. The thought was hideous. Yet that attraction might keep Bradan alive.

  'I have to destroy Dhraji,' Melcorka said.

  'No mortal weapon can kill a demon.' Kulothunga touched his sword. 'I am the only man who has ever been victorious over a rakshasa.'

  Melcorka allowed herself a small smile. 'If a man can do it, I can do it,' she said, although she did not feel the confidence she hoped to portray. On her three previous encounters with the rakshasa, she had failed to kill it. Why should the next attempt be any different?

  Bearnas' words came to her again: 'Use the steel from the west bathed in the water from the north to defeat the evil from the south when the sun sets in the east.'

  What had that meant? The sun never set in the east. That was against nature.

  Melcorka shook her head. Until she worked out the riddle, she could not defeat the rakshasa. The longer she took to solve the enigma, the more chance there was that Dhraji would kill Bradan in some hideous way, or use him for some other unimaginable purpose.

  'Excuse me.' Melcorka left the quarterdeck. She needed space to walk and think. Pacing the deck, back and forward, while the walls of Kollchi wavered under the heat and seabirds scream
ed around the fleet, Melcorka ran the words through her head a hundred times, always with the same result.

  Nothing.

  Use the steel from the west bathed in the water from the north to defeat the evil from the south when the sun sets in the east.

  The riddle seemed unsolvable. Melcorka teased it apart, seeking possible meanings. Evil from the south may mean the rakshasas. Steel from the west could refer to Defender. The other references made no sense at all. She became aware of Kosala watching over her only when he detached himself from his position beside the mainmast.

  'You'll wear yourself out, Melcorka. You've been walking for hours.'

  Melcorka saw that the sun was dipping in the west, silhouetting the Chola ships against a glorious purple-orange sky.

  'Thank you, Kosala. Maybe I had better get some sleep now. Tomorrow could be a busy day.'

  Kosala touched her forearm. 'It will be, Melcorka. Rajaraja plans to soften the city with a bombardment before he attacks.'

  'My day will be busy whatever Rajaraja decides to do,' Melcorka said.

  'You intend to rescue Bradan,' Kosala said. 'I will come with you.'

  'No, Kosala.' Melcorka gave a small smile. 'There is nobody I would rather have at my side, but this I must do alone.'

  'Why?' Kosala asked.

  'Because I do not expect to survive.'

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Waiting until the darkest hour of the night, Melcorka slipped over the ship's rail and swam toward Kollchi. From now onwards, she was alone. The fate of the Chola Empire and the war against Thiruzha was no longer her concern. Only one thing mattered: rescuing Bradan.

  The battered vessels of the Thiruzha fleet sat beneath the walls of Kollchi with a few nervous seamen left as guards. Melcorka strode from ship to ship, ignoring the shouted challenges, until she found Catriona.

  'Who are you?' a startled guard asked. Melcorka killed him with a swift thrust to the throat and pushed his body into the sea. She stepped onto the deck of Catriona.

  'Hello, old friend,' Melcorka looked around, recalling old memories. 'You won't be lying here for much longer. You deserve a better fate than to rot beside a bunch of pirates.'