by Joe Naff
His mind was already making plans to do just so once they were out of the woods.
“We need to know what happened here,” the woman standing at Sansehr’s side proclaimed.
Sansehr shook his head slightly and blinked his eyes, as if breaking some spell the girl’s beauty had put on him. “Yes, Viyana. Of course.” he bellowed.
Viyana rolled her eyes as her lips pulled tight. She was Lord Sansehr’s third in command, a title she fought long and hard for. Sansehr was a womanizer and a drunkard, but was built large and strong like a sturdy barn and had great skill in battle. She had fought many male soldiers to prove herself capable of being the Lord’s hand, and even after all of it, the title was still held by Feneris, simply because of his gender.
With his mind guided back on track by Viyana, Sansehr continued his questioning. “What was that explosion we heard? What has happened to all of the trees here?”
Zehlyr shook his head. “I have no idea, sir.”
Sansehr glared angrily at him. “I’m hearing a lot of ‘I don’t know’ from the only two people I’ve seen out here. I’ve half a mind to arrest you both until I can get some answers.”
“It’s the truth, my lord,” Zehlyr responded. He was trying very hard not to shout, but the thought of being jailed wasn’t helping him to calm down. “I was following one of my sheep into the trees when I heard the explosion. The force threw me a good thirty feet! After that, I came to investigate.”
Sansehr gave the boy another leer of uncertainty. “Guards!” he shouted.
Zehlyr’s heart raced. He could feel a bead of sweat running down his spine.
“Search the area!” Sansehr ordered. “See what you can find and report it to me!” At his command, the guards dispersed to inspect the pit.
Zehlyr failed to disguise the sigh of relief he let out.
Sansehr’s eyes shot back toward Zehlyr. “Don’t think you’re in the clear, boy. You’re both staying by my side until this is all sorted out.”
“We’ve got bodies, my lord!” one of the guards shouted from high on the slope.
“Human?!” Sansehr asked, turning his head in the direction of the call.
The guard shook his head. He was leaning over one of the cloaked corpses. “No sir, balisekts.”
“Balisekts?!” Sansehr roared in anger and confusion.
“Got some over here, too!” another guard called out.
“Two on this slope!” shouted another.
Sansehr lowered his eyes and shook his head. “What’s going on here?” One of the guards ran back down the slope towards his lord. In his hands, he clutched a dirty, red cloak.
“They’re all wearing these, lord,” the guard said.
Sansehr took the cloak and studied it, his brow furrowed as he turned the garment over in his hands. None of this made any sense, and he felt unnatural in a situation where he didn’t have all the answers. “So many questions,” he said quietly to no one. He passed the soiled cloak to Feneris. “We take this with us.” His eyes snapped back to Zehlyr and his female companion. “Them, too.”
Two guards moved in and took their places around Zehlyr and the girl. Zehlyr swallowed nervously. He wasn’t being taken prisoner, but he wasn’t exactly free to go either. He looked over to the girl. Her muddy, pink hair had fallen in front of her face again, but he could see just enough of the shape of her mouth to discern that she was near tears.
Sansehr marched back out of the pit with Feneris and Viyana following closely at his sides. “I want this site kept under watch at all times. Send patrols out to look for more signs of balisekt activity.”
“Yes, my lord,” Viyana and Feneris said in unison.
“The boy and girl do not leave my sight until we have some answers.”
“Yes, my lord,” they said again.
Zehlyr felt the gentle push of a spear butt against his back. Taking the hint, he began marching back out of the pit. The girl followed at his side. As they all climbed out onto level ground, the guards fell back behind them. Sansehr’s entourage had found a path between the fallen trees that could be trekked without climbing atop the trunks, but it was only wide enough to walk in twos. The guards must have figured that the trees themselves provided enough assurance that the captives wouldn’t escape, but Zehlyr took it as an opportunity to talk to his fellow prisoner with a bit of privacy.
“Are you okay?” he asked. The girl gave no reply. Her bare feet squished in the mud with each step. Zehlyr hurried his steps a bit, getting ahead of her and looking back over his shoulder. She had put the hood of the borrowed cloak over her head, and all he could see was her matted hair poking out from underneath it.
“Hey,” he said, trying to get her attention but also keep his voice down. “It’s okay. You can talk to me.”
She sighed. “I want to know who I am.” Her head rose, letting Zehlyr see her face and the twin tears racing down her cheeks from her sparkling eyes. “I feel like my life just started when you woke me up, but I know that’s impossible. I just need answers. I need something to give me clarity.”
Against his better judgment, Zehlyr reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. He expected her to jerk away, but instead she leaned her head towards him, nuzzling her cheek against his wrist. He couldn’t discern if she felt genuinely comforted, or if she was simply gravitating towards the only person in her life not treating her like a prisoner. Either way, he was glad she was accepting his help.
“Don’t worry,” he said warmly, still keeping his voice down so the guards would stay back. “We’ll get you back to the village and someone will recognize you. Then we can get you back with your family and your memory will return.”
She gave a small smile. It was barely noticeable, but it was enough to let Zehlyr know he was getting through to her. Truth be told, he was just as perplexed as she seemed to be. He’d gone into the Savage Lands, into the heart of the phenomenon, having no idea what to expect, and his mind had concocted many different things, but certainly not a strange, naked girl lying amongst a bunch of dead balisekts.
There were so many questions. Why were the balisekts this close to the Lands of Order? Why were they dressed in those strange cloaks? Had they kidnapped this girl from the village and, if so, why had no one noticed? This was confusing enough for him to contemplate, but he couldn’t imagine how difficult it must be for her. At least he knew his past. At least he knew his place in the world.
At least he had a name.
“You know, until we find out what you’re real name is, I need something to call you.” She turned away again and Zehlyr could hear another sigh escape her lips. He couldn’t imagine how hard it would be not to know his own name. His right foot found a small rock, causing him to stumble. He turned to face forward again, minding his steps through the muddy earth. The sunlight was bright and hot upon his face, unhindered thanks to the lack of foliage above him and making the air smell hot.
“I went into the Savage Lands once by myself when I was a child,” Zehlyr said. He wasn’t sure if he was talking to her in particular, or if he was just recalling the past as a way to pass the time. “Mother and father were furious when they found out, but I’d always wondered what it was like to walk amongst the trees towering over my head.”
“What happened when you went in there?” she asked without looking at him.
Zehlyr smiled. Maybe he was getting through to her. “I wandered in too far and got lost. I must have gone at least a mile into the woods before I realized I didn’t know the way back. I remember being so scared as I ran around in the trees. I didn’t know if I’d ever make it out or ever see my family again. Then I came to a cluster of huge azalea bushes towering high over my head. The flowers were at their fullest, with thick petals of bright pink. There were hundreds of them, each one absolutely breathtaking.”
Zehlyr looked up into the sunshine warming his face and smiled. “I remember being amazed that the forest could hold such a beautiful sight. All I’d ever heard was h
ow terrifying and horrible it was in the Savage Lands, but those flowers were more amazing than anything I’d ever seen.”
“It sounds beautiful,” she said. Zehlyr’s story of comfort and wonder was helping her to feel better. She turned to look at him, not attempting to hide herself. Her hands reached up and peeled the hood back.
“It was more than that,” he responded. “I remember feeling something then that I still can’t explain.”
“What’s that?” she inquired.
Zehlyr continued to look off into the clear, blue sky. “When I was lost in the trees, I felt so alone. Standing in that spot amongst the azalea bushes, I felt as though someone, or something, was standing there with me. I still remember feeling a gentle hand on my shoulder, and in that moment, I knew I wasn’t alone.” He laughed a little as he realized how silly he sounded. “I wonder sometimes if it was the Lady there with me.”
“Perhaps She was,” the girl said with a smile.
He looked at her. “Your hair reminds me of those flowers when I was a child. May I call you Azalea?”
She smiled. It was the first genuine smile she’d given since she woke up. It likely wasn’t her real name, but it was a name. Better still, it was a name given to her by someone who seemed to care for her. She also found the name quite lovely. “I would like that,” she responded. “Azalea; I like it a lot.”
Their moment was short lived. As Sansehr’s traveling party passed by the massive root ball of a downed maple, a soft rustling filled their ears. Feneris and Viyana heard it first, each throwing a hand out to shield their Lord from possible harm. The guards sprang into action, half surrounding their lord while the rest raced into the dirty roots in search of the sound’s source.
Zehlyr and Azalea suddenly found themselves completely ignored. They could run away and likely escape with their captors now engaging a phantom threat. Zehlyr considered the possibility, but his curiosity kept him from leaving, that, and Azelea’s hands quickly wrapping around his arm. Instead, they stood together, watching on as the guards returned to the path, dragging behind them another red-cloaked balisekt. This time, however, the beast’s arms and legs flailed wildly as it hissed and clicked in protest. This one was still alive, badly injured, but alive.
“Found a live one, lord,” one the guards said. He and the other guards forced the creature to its hands and knees in the mud. Trails of blood ran between its scales from wounds both old and fresh. Its cloak was in shreds and caked in mud. The balisekt’s clawed hands sank into the wet earth, holding its body up off the ground. There was fight in its spirit, but the body was too weak to do anything with it.
The creature groaned as it tried to stand. It made it up off its hands before one of the guards kicked it in the back of the neck and sent it crashing back down. Feneris leaned in and placed his boot on the creature’s back. His sword was held down, with the tip resting on the side of its head.
Sansehr looked down on the beast with a sneer. “Kill it,” he said with no emotion. He could have just as easily been deciding what to have for dinner. Nodding back towards his lord, Feneris held his hands high over his head, prepared to thrust the blade down into the creature's neck and end its life, but amongst the furious hisses and clicks, Zehlyr heard something familiar with haunting clarity.
“Stop!” the creature yelled. “Don’t…kill…me.”
Everyone jumped back in alarm, including Feneris before he could deliver the deathblow.
“Lady’s grace, it spoke!” Viyana shouted as she drew her sword.
“How is that possible?!” Feneris questioned. The guards backed away from the balisekt, allowing it to slowly rise to its feet and look the Lord of Meadowgold directly in the eyes.
“Please, human, spare me,” it said. It spoke like a man with a terrible lisp, but its words were completely understandable. Its knees knocked beneath it, showing just how weak it was.
Sansehr stepped forward, watching the creature with almost child-like curiosity. He had no idea what to make of this. The balisekt was speaking clearly and in his own tongue. Ordering its death had felt as simple as slaughtering a lamb for the evening meal, but intelligent creatures weren’t killed like cattle. They met their end on the battlefield. He’d never thought balisekts were as civilized as humans were.
The balisekt simply stood there, weak-legged and breathing heavily. It barely had the strength to draw breath, certainly not enough left to defend itself. Its fate was in the hands of whatever words would come from the lord’s mouth.
“Bind the balisekt and take it with us,” Sansehr finally declared as he turned back towards the trail. “If this creature can speak, it can give us answers.”
Chapter 4
“Though human blood runs through my veins, I cannot bring myself to tread in the lands of my kin. The trees are gone, long since cleared away, but I feel their spirits all around me whenever I wander through the empty fields. I hear their cries, calling out through the centuries, demanding to be avenged.”
From the journal of Teranis the Harmonious: 63rd year of the New Age
Meadowgold was a very different place from this morning when Zehlyr ventured off in search of his lost sheep. The once quiet human settlement was in pandemonium. Debris from the village littered the fields to the north. There were torn pieces of thatched roof, laundry that had been hanging on the line to dry, bulletins that had hung in the center of the village, all littering the fields from the force of the blast. The people moved frantically about, searching for their belongings, their loved ones, and answers.
Zehlyr and Azalea stepped out of the trees and back into the northern fields, following Sansehr and his guards. Once out of the forest, his first instinct was to look for his flock. His sheep were gone, but so were the livestock from the other families that kept them. This didn’t surprise him. What was left of the flocks that hadn’t scattered in fright likely had been quickly led back into the village by their owners. He said a silent prayer to the Lady that his sheep were still in Meadowgold and his idiot brother had enough sense to rush them back home. Those sheep were their livelihood, and they couldn’t afford to lose any more.
“Does anything look familiar?” he asked Azalea.
She shook her head. “I have no memory of this place.” It was a lovely village, considering the damage, but nothing about it seemed familiar. She hoped the disarray was clouding her memory. After all, this had to be her home. If it wasn’t here, where could it be?
Zehlyr looked forward again, reacting just in time to step over a plank of wood stuck in the ground. “Don’t worry, it’s not exactly as I remember it, either.”
Up ahead of them, Sansehr marched at the head of the group. Behind him came Feneris and Viyana. Each was holding a chain, which was shackled to a collar around the neck of their balisekt prisoner. The beast didn’t attempt to flee, but that was likely due to his lack of strength. A healthy balisekt could easily overpower two humans and race back towards the forest, but this one could barely stand, and the long march through the forest had been hard enough on it.
Zehlyr couldn’t help but feel some pity for the creature. He’d never looked upon the face of a balisekt until this day, but there was an unmistakable sadness in its expression. Its eyes were shut. Its thin, long lips hung slightly open. Its long tail dragged limp behind it like a heavy sack of feed. It seemed beaten as much in spirit as it was in body. He wondered what answers they could get from the creature about what happened in the Savage Lands and, after they were extracted, what fate Sansehr would decide for it.
Their ears were met with screams of terror just before they reached the edge of the village. The people on the outskirts shrieked and fled at the sight of a balisekt in their midst. Mothers clutched their children’s arms and dragged them quickly indoors. Men drew knives and axes, leering menacingly at the creature as it passed them. If not for the fearlessly still expression of Lord Sansehr, the people would likely have rushed the balisekt and killed it out of panic.
Az
alea slipped a hand into Zehlyr’s and clutched tightly to his arm with the other. Her skin was cold and trembled against his. He could only imagine what she was thinking. For someone with no memory of her life before the morning, seeing Meadowgold in such a state would be frightening indeed. He reached over and placed a hand on top of hers, trying to calm her nerves.
“It’ll be alright,” he said, though he wasn’t sure if he believed his own words. Nothing was sure at this point other than the fact that nothing would ever be the same again.
“Zehlyr!” Cherin shouted as he emerged from the crowd. His older brother rushed into the street towards him, but two of Sansehr’s guards quickly blocked him.
“Wait!” Zehlyr called to the soldiers. “That’s my brother!”
Sansehr looked back over his shoulder to see what the matter was. As the guards looked to him for approval, he simply nodded before turning away again. The guards moved aside and let Cherin run to his brother.
Zehlyr opened his arms, expecting an embrace from his sibling, full of love and relief that he was okay. However, all it did was open him up wide for the punch to the stomach he received instead. The force knocked the air from his lungs, causing him to double over.
“Where have you been, goblin brain?!” Cherin demanded. “Where’s the sheep?”
“Glad to see you were so worried about me,” Zehlyr croaked out between gulps of air.
Cherin took another look around as his brother straightened back out. “What’s going on around here? What happened out in the woods? Why do they have a balisekt? Who is…?” His sentence trailed off into silence as he looked into Azalea’s beautiful, yet scowling face.
“I’m Azalea,” she said harshly. “Your brother saved my life, you big jerk.”
Cherin raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure he didn’t just trip over you or something?”
