Paying the Price

by Julia P. Lynde

I left her there on the beach and stormed off, finding a spot as far away as the collar would allow, then sat down with my back to her.

  I watched as she organized the remaining men to collect everything they could from the wreckage. Miraculously, my chest of clothes was found. I imagined everything in it was ruined, but Dareena walked over to sit next to me.

  "Unless you have an order I am to follow, leave me alone."

  "I wouldn't have guessed it," she said. "But the contents of your chest are dry. You can have dry clothes if you want them."

  I didn't answer her. She sat quietly next to me, then she reached out to stroke me, but I moved away from her as fast as I could. She got up and left me alone.

  One of the men stopped by after a while and offered me water. I ignored him.

  Some of the men swam out to what was left of the wreck. They came back pushing a large clump of stuff, all tied together into some sort of raft. I didn't pay attention to whatever they had.

  Of the ship's boats there was no sign. I didn't know if they had been used earlier, destroyed in the wreckage, or taken by some of the men. There were no boats, no ship, and nothing but mangrove swap and ocean in sight.

  I didn't see how, but they got a fire going, and some of the men figured out how to catch fish. Dareena walked over and sat down. She had two plates and the mug with a few swallows of water. I wondered how salty the fish was and how long the water would last.

  She tried to hand me one of the plates, but I ignored her.

  "If you make me order you, I will also start to treat you as a puppet again. If you cooperate, I will offer you as much dignity as I can."

  I ignored her.

  "Damn it, Meorie!"

  "What do you want from me? Do you expect me to be cheerful? Well, at least when you stab me, you stab me in the front. For that I should be cheerful and cooperative? Is that even remotely a reasonable expectation?"

  "Eat your fish, drink your share of the water, and I am going to show you the treaty."

  It was an order. I ate the fish sullenly and drank half the water. I glared at her the entire time.

  I was still thirsty. I imagined it was going to get a lot worse.

  She ate her fish and finished the water. Then she stood up and said, "Follow."

  I again had no choice. I followed her back to camp. She hadn't told me to bring my plate, so I left it on the sand. She turned around and noticed my empty hands. She looked pained. "Bring the plate with you," she said. I went back and got it.

  She drew me back to the camp and ordered me to sit. I sat. She handed the plates and mug to someone then pulled the satchel out from inside her tunic. She opened it very carefully. "It stayed dry," she said. "Thank you for preserving it."

  She pulled the treaty out. Before she gave it to me, she ordered me, "You will treat this with the most care possible."

  I nodded. If it were a real treaty, she wouldn't have had to order me.

  She handed it to me. It was a single sheet of parchment paper. "There are addendums," she said. "But that is the basic agreement."

  I looked at it. It was written in Tendarian. "I can't read it."

  "Please look at the signatures at the bottom."

  I wouldn't have recognized Queen Fridara's hand, but there was a signature and seal that purported to be hers. I readily recognized Linara's signature and seal. They looked authentic, although without my magic, I couldn't verify. I told Dareena that.

  "Do you think it's fake?"

  I thought about it. "No. What would be the point?"

  "Will you trust me to translate it to you?"

  I nodded. She moved to sit next to me and pointed with her finger. She read each passage, first in Tendarian, then gave me a translation. Assuming she was offering an honest translation, it was a treaty. More importantly, it was a fair treaty, to everyone except me.

  I was actually mentioned by name. I was clause four.

  The first part of the treaty discussed the basic terms. It was an agreement to an immediate and permanent cessation of hostilities. Then I was discussed, then the reasons for the war was discussed with an acceptance of blame on both sides. Tendaria offered small reparations, as it was agreed their forces had crossed the border first, but the reparations were small.

  Clause four required that I stand trial in Rendarin for my war crimes. No details were offered.

  "Do any of the addendums refer to me?"

  "No. All other agreements about you were verbal."

  "Do you believe the treaty will be fully ratified by both sides?"

  "It has already been ratified by Norinia. It was agreed to by Tendaria, and none of the addendums are going to be a problem. They are just details."

  "So it will be ratified if I arrive in Rendarin. What are the chances that won't happen? If, for instance, one of your warships is attacked and suck by a pair of Norinian warships?"

  She went back to one of the clauses and reread it. It basically said that it is understood by both sides that not all forces involved in the conflict would receive immediate notification of the cessation of hostilities, and that both sides would defend themselves without being the aggressor, retreating from conflict as much as possible.

  "So your sunk ship won't change things."

  "No."

  I looked at her. "I won't forgive my sister or anyone else in Norinia. Ever. They stabbed me in the back. They should at least have had the decency to talk to me."

  "I don't care," she said. "I care only that you go to Rendarin."

  "I will cooperate. I don't promise to be pleasant."

  Dareena's smile outshone the sun. "Thank you."

  "If you are lying, it is your soul that will rot."

  "I am not lying."

  I got up from the sand and brushed myself off. "Let me know when you figure out how to get there." Then I walked away, back to my spot on the beach.

  Dareena followed me. I turned to stare at her.

  "I had the impression you had a plan," she said.

  "My plan involved building a boat. So, build a boat."

  "We have no tools," she said.

  "Then it may make it take a while."

  I sat down in the sand, staring out over the ocean. Dareena sat down beside me. "Meorie, it's a real peace. Surely you understand how important this is. Did you lie when you said you would give your life for peace?"

  "No."

  "Do you think I am lying?"

  I sighed. "No."

  "Will you please help me make this peace happen? Not just cooperate, but actively help."

  I sighed. "I think I can make a boat, but I got the impression from you Norinia was much closer than Tendaria. I was planning a boat that would get me to Norinia."

  "How could you make this boat?"

  "It's a moot point. You would need to allow me to use my magic."

  "You can make a boat with your magic?"

  "No, some of the mangrove trees looked big enough to be worth hollowing out. I can cut one down, cut it to length, give it a very rough shape, and hollow it out. I would be completely exhausted, but I think I can do it. I've never tried. I've never built a boat or studied boat building. It would be the least seaworthy boat you could ever imagine. But it would float, and if we could fashion a paddle, paddling it would be possible."

  "Could you hollow out two?"

  "It might take two days." I paused. "And probably more of the water than you would be willing to spare."

  "If I removed the collar and the amulet, would you promise to make the two boat hulls and then allow me to replace the amulet and collar?"

  I stared at her. "You ask a lot."

  "I know. You know what is at stake."

  "If you trust me, why do you need the amulet and collar?"

  "Two reasons. First, you might change your mind. Second, everyone else we encounter will feel safer and are less likely to kill you out of hand."

  I looked away. "Fine. If this peace doesn't happen, you will know what you did to me. I will have t
o die knowing that."

  "Do you promise to let me put these back on you when I ask to?"

  "I promise you may replace them under the same terms that were given when you first put them on."

  She nodded and reached out. The collar fell from my neck. Then she removed the amulet as well.

  I felt their magical bonds leave me immediately. I felt amazingly free. "Oh wow," I said. "Wow."

  I looked away for a while, collecting my thoughts. "All right," I said. "Does anyone here know more about building a canoe than I do?"

  I looked over at Dareena and she was smiling. "Not a canoe," she said. "A catamaran. We have a sail. We have a lot of rope and cordage. If you can cut the trees, we can build a sailboat."

  "All right," I said. "Go pick the trees you want."

  We stood up together and walked to the edge of the swamp. I watched as she stepped into it, sinking into the mud. She backed up.

  I sighed and stepped up to the nearest tree. I could reach it from dry ground. I looked at it. "Dareena, please move your men out of range for when this falls. I don't know which way it's going to go."

  "That one is too small."

  "It will provide a mast and other parts. More importantly, we can use it to make a little walkway further into the swamp."

  "How long will your magic last?"

  "We'll find out. I've never done this."

  Then I thought about how to take the tree down using the lowest application of my magic I could. Everyone's magic was different. Mine was basically the ability to delivery small bursts of energy, usually about the size of a fist.

  I stood to the side of the tree, gathered my magic, and threw it at the tree in a glancing blow. It took out a chunk of the tree in a shower of splinters. I had aimed for above where the roots of the tree branched out from the main trunk.

  Dareena stood behind me, watching. I had warned her for her men, and if it fell on them now, it wasn't my fault.

  I sent several more bolts of power through the tree, chewing through it. The tree began to lean towards the cut I had made. I slowed down, delivering two more blasts, and the tree began to fall. I watched it, then stepped aside as it came down on the beach, startling the men. I had aimed for them and was very disappointed when I had missed.

  "Nice aim," Dareena said.

  "Not exactly," I said. "I was aiming another five degrees to the left."

  She looked and gave me a wan smile. "Cute."

  "I told you to move them. Do we have any tools at all?"

  "Sorry."

  I sighed, then began working my way up the tree, using my magic to knock off the branches. What a waste of magic. I tried controlling the bursts, but it wasn't the sort of magic to do surgery.

  "Dareena, if you would be so kind as to have your men attempt to use the branches as a walkway to whatever trees you would like next. We'll see if that works better than walking in the mud."

  "What do you mean, a walkway?"

  "Like snowshoes?"

  "Like what?"

  I signed and walked back to the edge of the swamp, dragging several branches with me. I tossed them down on the mud, then walked on them, letting the branches spread my weight out further. I sunk, but not very far.

  "Oh. I understand now."

  "I can bring down one more tree then will need to rest and will need water."

  I sat down and watched her direct the men. They managed to build a path to a large tree. Dareena sat down next to me and asked, "Can you drop this one back in this direction?"

  "I can try. No promises." I paused. "Do we at least have some knives or swords or something?"

  "One knife."

  I nodded, then walked out to the tree she wanted. They had set extra branches near the tree so I had more to stand on. I stared at it, then began throwing my magic at it. It took me nearly a half hour to bring it down, and I was firing little more than fizzles by the time I was done.

  The tree almost landed on Dareena. She had to scramble out of the way as it fell.

  "You did that on purpose!" she yelled at me.

  "If you think you can aim better, you can bring down the next one," I told her, leaning on the trunk, exhausted."

  She stood waiting for me. I stood, leaning on the tree.

  "Well?" she asked.

  "Well what?"

  "Aren't you going to cut it up?" she yelled at me.

  I looked at the path back to dry land. The tree had fallen on it. I sighed and began working my way back to her. I almost lost a boot in the muck, but I made it back and sat down heavily.

  "Well?"

  I sighed and tossed a bolt at the tree. It sputtered and died. I blew on my finger like it was hot.

  "Stop messing around, Meorie."

  I looked at her. "I told you I could bring it down, then I would need a rest. I didn't say I would cut it up, too."

  She walked over to me and put her hands on her hips, staring down at me. "How long a rest?"

  "I don't know. A few hours."

  She glared at me.

  "Look," I said. "If you don't like my boat building skills, find someone else. Or say 'thank you for the huge headache you've given yourself running yourself out of magic'. Pick one or the other."

  She turned to her men and issued some orders. They immediately jumped to and began doing something. I'm not sure what. She walked to camp and then came back. She was holding the collar and amulet.

  "Oh, Dareena, please. A few hours. Please."

  "You promised you would take them back when I asked. I am asking."

  "You don't know what a relief it is to be done with them."

  "You could run off."

  "I won't run off. I'm going to take a nap. Please don't ask."

  "I'm sorry."

  "You're sorry a lot." I didn't resist as she draped the amulet around my neck. I felt it cut me off from my magic. Then she put the slave collar back on and dictated my agreement. I repeated after her, and I felt it's magic exert itself. I looked up at her and offered the worst betrayed look I could.

  Then she gave me my orders. I was to make no attempt to escape, to hurt myself, to hurt anyone else. The list went on.

  "Fine," I said.

  I started to lie down right where I was but Dareena said, "The men are building a shelter for you, to get you out of the sun."

  I looked, and they were almost done. They had used branches from the first tree I had cut down and sail material to cover it. I reached up to Dareena, and she pulled me to my feet. Then I stumbled over to the makeshift shelter, smiled briefly at the men, and crawled underneath it.

  I was asleep almost immediately.

  * * *

  I woke some time later. Dareena was kneeling over me, stroking me.

  "What are you doing?"

  Her touch felt amazing.

  I tried pulling away from her, but she said, "Lie still," and kept stroking me.

  "You promised."

  "I have two kinds of magic. I have the binding magic you've experienced. And I have the ability to feed magic to someone else. I'm feeding your magic."

  The strokes felt insanely wonderful, each one better than the other. I looked up, and she was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen.

  "Please stop."

  "We only have two more jugs of water," she said. "No sign of rain. I am so sorry."

  She continued stroking me, and soon I was clutching at her like an addict. And still she stroked me, and I reached up and pulled her mouth to mine.

  She was surprised.

  She tasted salty and wonderful. She kissed me back, and it was like a kiss from heaven.

  Finally she broke the kiss and moved away from me.

  "It's the collar," she said. "Just the collar. It will wear off."

  "No it won't."

  "It's just the collar."

  I sighed. "Believe what you want."

  She took a deep breath. "Will you agree to work on the boat and then accept the amulet and collar when next I ask?"

 
; "Yes."

  She removed them both then backed out of the small space. I followed after her, avoiding touching her.

  It was late afternoon. I had slept for an hour or two. I stretched then looked at the tree I had cut down. The men had removed the smallest branches, but the larger ones had proven to be too much. I turned to Dareena. "Do I need to take down a second tree, or can we use two pieces from this one?"

  "We have a second tree picked out, and we have marked where you should cut this one."

  "May I have some water?"

  She nodded and said something to one of the men. He poured water for me and gave me the mug. I looked at it. There wasn't a lot of water. I drank what he had given me and didn't ask for more.

  I walked over to the big tree. Dareena followed me. "Can you give me an approximate shape to cut? It will reduce the shaping I need to do later."

  "Any angle is fine. It's going to be a poor boat no matter what we do."

  I knelt down and then envisioned the smallest amounts of energy I could. I began cutting the trunk of the tree at an angle, working my way from the part nearest the ground. It took me ten minutes, but I felt less drained than I had after cutting it down to begin with.

  "I will feed you more magic now."

  I looked at her. "I'm not wearing the collar."

  She smiled. "No, you're not. May I?"

  I nodded. She approached and began stroking my arms. It felt nice, but without the collar helping, it was just normal nice. Still, she was lovely and I found my body responding to her. "You realize I am probably in love with you, Dareena," I said very quietly.

  "I know," she said. "I am sorry. It was not my intention."

  "Why is that excuse acceptable for you but not for me?"

  "Because I haven't killed anyone. And because my trial won't make peace." She continued to pet me for a while before she said, "How is that?"

  "Good." I moved down the tree, removing the limbs that were in the way. Then Dareena led me to the other tree they wanted me to cut. She had me well filled with magic, and I was able to take it down fairly easily.

  "More?"

  "How much more do you have?"

  "I can fill you three or four more times." I leaned against the downed trunk, and Dareena began stroking my arms. I tried to ignore how close she was, and how much I wanted her.

  "You have a lot to answer for with me," I told her.