“I have a few questions for you,” Braden said as he walked up to them, indifferent to their pain. He dragged them bodily from their horses and threw them on the ground.
Micah ran back to the road where she could start working on the injured Aurochs. Arrows needed to be removed and numbweed applied to help stop the bleeding and ease the pain. Maybe the wounds needed stitching. She wouldn’t know until she checked.
“How long have you been here?” They acted like they weren’t going to answer until G-War stabbed his claws into the calf of one man. He howled in pain, refusing to speak, but the other became very cooperative.
“We arrived shortly before you. We have an outpost just up the road and received word a short while ago of strangers with strange animals who were killing anyone from the Provincial Government.”
“Who told you this?” Braden asked pointedly. The man shook his head. He either didn’t know or wouldn’t tell. But that didn’t matter when G-War was around. The ‘cat shook his head. The man didn’t know.
“We don’t like surprises,” Braden emphasized. He wanted to know what he was up against. If the Governor deployed archers within the city, the companions would have a difficult time. “Who’s left at the outpost and what’s it look like?”
The man hesitated, just long enough for G-War to expose a paw full of claws and stab them into the man’s exposed arm. “Stop!” he howled. The ‘cat kept his claws embedded as an implied threat, but didn’t rake them through the man’s flesh. Not yet anyway. “It’s small. A tent with a guard shack on the road. There’s probably only two men left there. They said you killed fifty men.” The man squirmed, trying to get G-War to extract the claws from his arm. G-War stared into the man’s eyes, finally retracting his claws and jumping down.
‘I have it. We’ll learn nothing more from this one. Put him out of my misery and let’s go,’ G-War told Braden as the ‘cat headed toward the road.
“C’mon, G, I can’t just kill him.” The ‘cat didn’t answer. Braden shook his head, then tied the man up, despite the fact that he was bleeding from the wounds in his leg. The other man was blind, his face shredded. Braden tied him up, too. He turned the horses loose and sent them running east, away from the road, away from Jefferson City.
Braden took the weapons from the two survivors and gathered the bows and arrows from the dead before returning to the wagon. Micah had already removed the arrows from Arnie and Brandt. Zeller slowly rubbed numbweed into Arnie’s wounds. Brandt’s muscles were so thick that his arrow hadn’t gone too deeply. With the numbweed, he insisted that it was nothing more than a bug bite.
Arnie had never been injured before. He was afraid. One arrow hit his shoulder, stopping when it hit the bone. Since he kept running, the arrowhead did more damage, but none of it critical. The second arrow embedded in the cartilage between his ribs, making it painful for him to breathe. Micah couldn’t tell if it penetrated his lungs. The only thing they could do was hope that it hadn’t, expecting that he’d be frothing blood from his nose and mouth if there was internal damage.
Braden took out his sewing kit to work on the damage to Arnie’s shoulder. After the numbweed, the Aurochs was more forgiving. The humans reassured him that the damage would heal, and he’d be back to his old self.
‘Zeller,’ he cried. ‘I no like hurt. I happy with braid man,’ he continued in his simple way, but his language continued to improve the more time he spent with Zeller.
Braden talked Arnie through what he was doing as he sewed tight stitches to close the wound around the torn muscles. Braden told him about the injury from the Lizard Men, where he was out for a number of turns while Micah kept them all fed and tended to the injures of the entire caravan. The King of the Aurochs interjected with his view of that incident where he was wedged into the trees in the middle of a vicious battle. He moved in front to show some of the scars on his side, pointing out which ones were from that battle, as opposed to the ones from the Bat-Ravens, as opposed to the ones from the many attacks during his runs on the road through the Amazon. He also said how Braden and the others had always come to his rescue, throwing their small frail bodies at Brandt’s enemies.
When Brandt finished, he looked at Braden and then bobbed his head as he laughed in his Aurochs way.
“When we met you, I don’t think you had any scars,” Braden said, slapping the great creature on his well-muscled shoulder. Braden bared his chest and showed the angry crease to Arnie. “Welcome to the club, my friend. It may not be pretty, but it’s pretty exclusive.” Micah showed her neck and arms to the smaller Aurochs, laughing as if the pain wasn’t still fresh in her memory. It was, but the thrill of defeating their enemies far outweighed the temporary discomfort of a few scratches, she rationalized.
Can’t Abide an Outpost
Brandt insisted on pulling the wagon to limit the stress on Arnie’s body. Arnie insisted that he was okay and that it took no effort to pull the wagon. In the end, Braden had to step in and make the decision. Arnie would continue to pull the wagon.
“We need you on counter-ambush duty,” Braden explained.
‘You just made that word up!’ Brandt argued.
“But it doesn’t change what the rest of this trip is going to look like!” Braden replied dismissively. “That’s it. The decision’s made. We need to get going before they have an army waiting for us. That ambush was bad, but it could have been worse.” They put Arnie into the harness and he started going before they were back in the wagon. They ran to catch up, getting pulled aboard by Zeller’s helping hand.
Brandt followed, and he wasn’t happy about it although he understood. It was better for the King to be free to attack the enemies of free trade. He agreed with Braden that trade was the life blood of their world. Without it, the people suffered and atrophied. He’d also learned to enjoy the cheerful greetings when entering a village pulling a cartload of trade goods. The people happily received them all, as equals.
Brandt looked with pride on the caravan. How far had they come since their meeting near Westerly?
Nerise looked out the back of the wagon at the King of the Aurochs, wondering about what he was thinking. She could see the look on his face change. She hadn’t been happy since her mother was taken away, and here she was, with a group like this, welcomed as one of their own. She was suddenly able to talk with her new friends, too, and amazed at what they had to say. She’d found a new home and was happy.
The Hawkoids were not pleased at all as they felt they let Braden and the others down. They missed the ambush when they’d flown ahead. They’d been watching the road and its approaches, not seeing the group of horses in the open area beyond the trees. They apologized repeatedly, but Braden and Micah maintained that they had nothing to be sorry for.
‘The way ahead?’ Micah asked over the mindlink.
Skirill and Zyena were flying side by side to give them the widest view of the road. The outpost was not far, as they learned. The Hawkoids flew around it and past it from different heights to determine exactly what they were up against. They found only one man in the shack on the road itself. He watched Skirill and Zyena as they flew past, ignoring them as they disappeared into the distance. Just another pair of birds, looking for a place to nest.
They stopped the wagon well out of sight of the outpost. Braden asked Micah if he could go with G-War and the Wolfoids to take the one man prisoner. She appreciated that he asked and was good with it. The ‘cat and the Wolfoids would keep her mate from coming to harm.
Braden ran with the Wolfoids, counting on the boost from the Old Tech boots to help him keep pace. He was still winded when they arrived east of the shack. They checked out the tent, seeing how it was set up for sleeping and eating, but no one was there. No horses were left in the corral area either.
They all knew what that meant. One of the two men had ridden to Jefferson City to inform the Governor. He’d be ready for them.
G-War confirmed that there was only one human in the area. H
e also noted there were deer nearby, if anyone was interested.
“Who wants to be the bait?” Braden asked. Bounder looked at Gray Strider and she shook her head. He conceded. Bounder would do it. While the others snuck up behind the shed, Bounder would run past, drawing the man from his post. As soon as he was outside the building, they’d disarm him and question him. With G-War’s help, it wouldn’t take long.
They discovered that the shack had windows on all sides, a fact that the Hawkoids had shared that Braden had missed. They abandoned their plan. They used the cover of the woods to get as close as possible. When there were no trees left to hide behind, they broke from cover and ran as fast as they could to the shack.
The man saw them coming but there was nothing he could do. He dropped his sword and held his hands up as Braden and the others slid to a stop. He walked out without any additional encouragement, much to G-War’s disappointment.
“How long ago did the rider go to Jefferson City to tell them we were coming?” Braden asked. The man tilted his chin up in defiance while keeping a wary eye on the Wolfoids.
‘He left at the same time as those who ambushed us,’ G-War told them.
“Half the morning then. He’s probably most of the way there by now. Skirill? Zyena? Can you get a look and see where he is? If he’s still far enough away, maybe you can encourage the horse to throw its rider…” The Hawkoids drove hard to fly north and catch the rider. They were like two brown and white arrows as they raced into the distance, flying for all they were worth, still looking for redemption from their earlier miscue.
“What?” the man asked, thinking that he may have spoken out loud when he didn’t intend to.
“What is he going to tell them when he gets there?” Braden continued. G-War nodded. “How many people will Governor Anderle bring out to fight us?” G-War shrugged.
‘The rider will tell them the same thing we heard from the other. The Governor can bring a rather substantial force to bear against us. This man doesn’t know how many archers there are.’
“So, what are we going to do with you?” Braden asked. He heard the wagon approach. Arnie was running even though they told him not to. Brandt was running alongside, giving the younger Aurochs an earful. Braden shook his head as he watched the free-for-all.
Their prisoner looked at the Aurochs and the wagon. He could see the Rabbits’ ears sticking up between the humans sitting on the front bench.
“So it’s all true?” the man had the courage to ask.
“What’s true?” Braden prodded.
“That you and your mutants are going after the Provincial Government,” the man said simply.
“And what else did you hear, that we were killing every representative from the government?” The man nodded. “That’s not quite true, is it? You’re not dead, and I have no intention of killing you. It doesn’t mean that I won’t let him do it, though, if you lie or stand in our way.” Braden nodded to the ‘cat who was calmly biting at the extended claws of his left paw.
“Yes. We are going to restore trade to the good people of the north. To do that, the Provincial Government has to go. Right now, you’re the only official I see, so here’s what we’re going to do. Come with me.” Braden picked the man up roughly and guided him to a point in front of Brandt where he was forced to his knees again. The King of the Aurochs towered over their prisoner and snorted in the man’s face for effect. The man’s fear was palpable. Braden pulled his blaster, dialed the flame setting, and torched the outpost. He jogged into the trees and soon, the smoke from the burning tent rose into the air. Braden left nothing behind.
Nerise watched with wide eyes. Pony pranced at the end of the rope tying him to the back of the wagon.
“I ask again, what are we going to do with you?” Braden asked after returning from his government facility eradication efforts.
“I swear allegiance to you!” the man blurted out. G-War shook his head.
“Remember that part where I said I’d kill you if you lied to me? You just did. I don’t want to hear anything else come out of your mouth, so stand up, take off all your clothes, and then walk that way,” Braden commanded. The man stood up and tried to take a swing. Before he could even cock his arm, Bounder smacked him across the head with his spear. The man fell to the ground.
Bounder prodded him until he did as he was told. The women turned away as the naked man walked cautiously to the south, past the wagon, and then started running. Braden fired one last blast at the man’s clothes.
“By the time he’s dressed again, I expect all of this to be over,” Braden told the others. With all of them back in the wagon, Arnie swung the wagon wide around the burning shack and they continued north.
Skirill checked in, disappointed that they had not caught up with the man riding north. They started to see people tending the fields and herds grazing nearby. They’d reached the outskirts of Jefferson City.
It was too late. Governor Anderle knew they were coming.
The Dark Clouds of War
‘Holly, we’re heading toward Jefferson City and expect to get a warm welcome. We don’t want to hurt anyone we don’t have to. Any advice?’ Braden asked over his neural implant, having already gotten input from the companions.
‘Looking at the imagery of the city, I suggest you don’t use the flame setting on your blasters or any lightning from the Wolfoids’ spears, to minimize a fire that would quickly grow out of control. I fear there is no firefighting capability in Jefferson City. On a different note, if you can approach from the east, you’ll probably encounter less resistance as they are expecting you from the south. Besides that, I can offer no other insights,’ Holly finished and held the link open, waiting to see if Braden had anything else. He didn’t.
“He suggests that we approach from the east,” Braden said matter-of-factly. They’d already reached that conclusion based on the hasty barricade erected south of the city boundary that the Hawkoids had shown them. There was no wall surrounding the city, no fortifications. Only buildings and wide roadways as it had been the center of trade for the known world, that was known to people like Braden and the Caravan Guild. To the north, the towns of Seinhold and Breston counted on trade from Jefferson City.
Anger seized Braden again. It was time to cut the weeds out of the garden.
“We’ll head east on a trail that’s coming up soon, ditch the wagon, and then we go in. All of us, including Nerise, especially Nerise. For her future and all those of her generation, we have to restore trade. They need to have the chance to grow up with the opportunities that they carve out for themselves, not what the Provincial Government rations back to them. The government–take away from the people and then give it back. No one should work like that. No one…” The others listened to Braden, more thinking out loud than lecturing.
Braden would always be the Free Trader. That persona was just below the surface at all times, ready to come out when the situation warranted. It bothered him immensely that in three short cycles, all trading had ceased in the north. With one final battle, they could restore it. He hoped the leaders of the Caravan Guild were still alive, but he was skeptical. The Provincial Government had shown itself to be ruthless toward anyone who didn’t share their beliefs.
Although he didn’t want to, he had to. Braden asked Arnie to run along the trail east. Braden wanted to put as much distance as possible between where the government thought they were and where they actually were. It pained Braden to see the Aurochs’ injuries start leaking again. Zeller started to cry as she shared her friend’s pain, although he reassured her that the numbweed was still working and he felt no pain.
Brandt hung his head in dismay, hoping that this was the worst sacrifice they’d have to make. In reality, he knew that they faced a difficult enemy in a location that did not favor Braden and his companions.
‘I expect we have the people on our side, Master Braden,’ Brandt said in his booming thought voice. ‘If we can win them over early, they can help
us keep it from becoming a full fight. I don’t think we can win a shootout. There is no place for us to run or hide. Arnie and I will be killed.’
The breath caught in Zeller’s throat at such a candid assessment of their future.
Braden thought about it. The Aurochs were too big to move within the city. He wanted them there to celebrate the victory, but the risk was too great.
“Will you protect Nerise?” he asked his large friend.
‘To my last breath,’ Brandt answered.
“No!” the little girl cried. “I want to go with you. I have to go with you.”
“Why?” Micah asked.
“To see why. To see what it was all about and why I have a new family now.” Braden’s insides churned. He pinched his eyes closed, the image of the fat man, Nerise’s father, choking out the last of his life at Braden’s feet threatened to overwhelm him. A hand gently squeezed his shoulder. With a heavy exhale, he composed himself.
“Okay. You come with us, but you have to stay with Patrice and Delavigne. Deal?” Braden choked and held out his hand. Nerise had been too young when the last trades happened in Cameron. She didn’t remember what the handshake was for. “We shake hands to seal the deal, to finalize the trade. We negotiate, agree, and then deliver. That’s all there is to it, and that’s what makes the trade great,” Braden said, feeling hollow reciting the laws of trade, while at the same time embracing the foundation it gave him.
She slapped her little hand into Braden’s and they shook. He pulled her to him and hugged her fiercely. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered. Before she stood up straight, she wiped her face with the back of her hand, then joined the Rabbits in the back.
“Are you okay with waiting with the wagon, Arnie? Brandt? We’ll stay in touch and if we need you to run down any mobs, we’ll call for help. Skirill and Zyena will show you where we are.” The Aurochs agreed because they had no choice. Although the injury to his knee was fully healed, Brandt had realized his mortality. In the city, he was afraid that he’d be trapped and killed like a piece of livestock. He wasn’t ready to die and more so in an effort where he couldn’t contribute. He’d be a distraction and the companions couldn’t afford that.
Free Trader Box Set - Books 4-6: Battle for the Amazon, Free the North!, Free Trader on the High Seas Page 37
