by D. H. Dunn
Garantika’s anger ripped through Upala like a cold wind, freezing the water of her guilt to ice, paralyzing her in this moment. A trial she likely deserved to face.
“Yet I soothe that burn with the knowledge that each Rakhum death brings us closer to the end, closer to fruition of a plan that has been in place for generations. Spanning the centuries, we have slowly worked, chipping away at the foundations of the twin statues that towered above us. Like termites, we ate at the wood and now finally now our agent and I are the ones tapped by destiny to bring you both to where you must go.”
Though the passion of his oratory had built to a crescendo there was no cheer from the assembled men and women behind Garantika. They each stood still as statues while he focused his intense gaze on her.
Their agent? Was that who had killed the guards in her library with such skill and proficiency?
“To bring you and your people, my good Upala, to the end they deserve. To end the existence of one or two Manad Vhan is not enough. For our ancestors and for our children, we must cleanse this world of you all.”
Upala found herself looking out of the corner of her eye to the sky, hoping to see Drew’s signal.
Her fear continued to grow as she stood before Garantika, who continued to grin at her, as if every movement she and Drew made had been preordained.
Drew walked hunched over through the shadowed streets of Nalam Wast, Trillip just ahead of him. All around them, the single-story stone buildings rose like darkened tombstones, their interiors as silent as the rest of the city seemed to be. Only the light of the twilight allowed them to find their way, though Drew could see the far-off yellow glow of flames to the north. Torches on the bridge, he supposed, where Upala waited for them to pull this off.
“Are you sure we are going the right way?” he whispered to Trillip. “Shouldn’t there be someone out here?”
“Kater had a curfew at sundown.” Trillip’s reply was quieter than before, he was learning. “It seems Garantika has kept it in place.”
“But we are going the right way?” Merin’s voice came from behind Drew.
She was walking alongside Sinar, who continued to have an amused grin as if this was all just a joke. Drew didn’t like having him there, but it was better than not knowing what the Manad Vhan was doing.
“Yes,” Trillip spoke slightly louder, but still his tone was low. “I have a friend in Nalam Wast, Jarkonten. He trades me grain sometimes, the grain warehouse is the only place in the city that would be big enough to hold this group inside.”
“Jarkonten?” Sinar let out a laugh, soft but still too loud. “The Rakhum males of this region have the most complex names I have seen in my travels. Most humorous.”
“Good sir, Rakhum men adopt a new syllable each decade of their life.” Trillip’s tone was offended. “I myself am giving great thought to my upcoming--”
“Maybe discuss this later, Trillip,” Drew said, cutting him off. “I see a large building ahead, is that it?”
The street Trillip had led them down culminated in a dead end, the single-story structure at the end was easily four times the size of the other buildings.
“Yes. I am sure that is it.”
Drew knelt, peering through the low light at the building. It had two large, hinged stone doors in the center of its long front, with no windows he could see or any other markings. The roof was similar to the other structures in area, wooden and angled to deposit accumulated snow behind them. Like all the other streets they had seen in Nalam Wast, this one was deserted.
“No guards,” Merin said, creeping closer to him. “Why would they not guard this?”
“They did not expect you?” Sinar asked quietly. “The Rakhum here seem timid, even for them.”
Perhaps he was correct, but Drew’s instincts told him something was wrong here. This could be the wrong building after all, or maybe it was a set up.
Frustrated, he supposed it didn’t matter. They didn’t have another plan and Upala was waiting for them. He couldn’t let her down. He looked back, past Merin to Sinar, who was still standing as if nothing was at stake.
“Sinar, you take one side of that door. I’ll take the other. When I give you the nod, we push.”
Sinar chuckled. “Sure, little Drew. I will open doors for you. Just remember what you will do for me.”
Drew nodded, returning Sinar’s toothy grin with one of his own. Yeah, I’ll remember. Get me what I need here, and you can have what you want, you bastard.
Thus far, his deal with this particular devil was holding. If it got back Upala and Merin’s people, it would be worth it.
He crept toward the door in the dwindling twilight, the long shadows rendering the building nearly black. Sinar walked to the other side, while Merin and Trillip stayed kneeling a few feet away. He put his hands on the stone door. It was cool, and smoothly polished. Putting even a little pressure on it caused it to move slightly but silently on its hinges. It was well made and well cared for.
Drew counted to three in his head, nodded to Sinar and pushed. The doors swung inward easily, the heavy stone slabs gliding on their hinges with little effort. Trillip and Merin rushed forward, the foursome entering the building as a group.
The interior was so dark it was nearly pitch black. It smelled strongly of grain, and Drew could feel fibrous material under his feet, the parts of the room with enough light to see looked empty.
Drew cursed himself that he had not grabbed a lantern, wishing he still had his flashlight from the pack he left in the Under.
There was a low cough toward the shadowed back of the space, followed by a moan. Two different voices, both from the rear of the warehouse.
A small spark of hope lit inside him. The hostages were here, they had a chance to pull this off after all. With Merin on his left and Trillip on his right, he inched forward.
The coughing continued, but the moans stopped. They were deeper into the warehouse now, the remnants of grain crunching under their feet.
As his eyes adjusted to the light he could see faint shapes in the darkness in front of them, shadows that slowly formed into bodies, dozens of them.
All standing, walking towards them.
Shit! It was a set up!
“Drew!” Merin shouted, her mind making the same connection.
He whirled around to run for the door, Merin, and Trillip moving to do the same as the lights came up. Lanterns sprung to life all around them, revealing not Rogek Shad prisoners, but armored men and women of Nalam Wast, brandishing swords and axes.
Drew heard the sound of the heavy stone doors closing behind them, slamming shut their only hope of escape.
Looking behind him, he saw at least ten more armed figures had entered from the street before closing off their exit.
Drew and Merin stared helplessly at each other as the mob advanced on them. Drew balled his fists in anger. He had played right into Garantika’s hands. Instead of getting Upala leverage they could all now be used against her.
In frustration he looked for Sinar, his mind scrambling for options. Maybe they could use his Manad Vhan abilities to get out of this. Perhaps it could be done without anyone being killed.
Sinar was nowhere to be seen.
Upala stood before Garantika while covered in shadow, the night having engulfed the sky. Clouds obscured the moon, leaving the only sources of light the torches in the gathered crowd and the glowing red crystals from the Yetis’ backs. It had been far too long, the signal from Drew was not coming.
Garantika smiled at her, leaving Upala feeling like her thoughts were somehow exposed to the man.
“You look as if you wait for a sign, my lady? Perhaps you wait for your companions who went ahead of you, farther down the river? Those who hoped to free the prisoners? Well, I should allow you to see them again then.”
He clapped his hands, and Upala could see through the dark a large mass of bodies entering the bridge from Nalam Wast. Even before she saw their faces, she knew what the
y would show. As they stepped into the light, it revealed the downcast expressions of Drew, Merin, and Trillip, each bound and gagged and surrounded by guards with blades to their throats. She breathed a small sigh in the knowledge that they were alive. Perhaps she could still bargain for their safety.
Drew’s eyes met hers for a moment, then cast down. He was ashamed, as if the failure here today was his. She ached to run to him, to take him in her arms and explain.
To let just one person see her for who she was trying to be, rather than who she had been.
Surrounding them was a vanguard of men and women, all armed and wearing clothing similar to Garantika. Blue robes covered with polished metal armor, helms covering their faces. She counted at least forty of them, outfitted in no garb she could associate with Nalam Wast. Garantika’s grin grew wider as he cast his arms wide.
“For the past thousand years, we Rakhum have climbed for you, built for you, and dug for you. You and your accursed brother, both frantically searching the archives of the great Manad Vhan hero, searching for hints and clues that might aid you if the Dragons returned. Each of you in your own Manad Vhan way, obsessed with the Dragons.”
“Garantika, if you will assure the safety of--”
He took a step forward toward her, cutting over her voice with his booming oratory.
“Yet you forgot your own history, the very history you were forcing us to uncover for you. Millenia ago, the Dragons created and subjugated the Manad Vhan, yet in time you rose up against them. You could not kill them, but you found a way to defeat them all the same. Now, the cycle repeats. In a plan that has spanned generations, we will see this world purged of you.”
Like a fog burning away in the sun, it all became frustratingly clear to Upala. She and Kater had been maneuvered into position, like cattle. Getting her brother to attack her, then somehow using their own Manad Vhan lore to trigger the portals in her Library, sending them all into another world.
“You--you caused the translation of my library into the Under.”
“It took hundreds of years to arrange,” Garantika laughed. “Through our agent we engineered Kater’s assault that put both of you in the same location, so we could attempt to translate you away. If we had known your brother would be so easy to manipulate, we might have tried it generations ago.”
For generations they had been working on this? The concept of parent passing down to child not only the anger, but the detailed plans against her and her brother was difficult to absorb.
Yet all around her, in the eyes of Merin as well as the people of Nalam Wast, was the proof that it had been deserved.
Whole families of Rakhum living their lives hating Kater, hating her. These emotions had become part of their culture. Looking at the assembled crowd behind Garantika, standing on the bridge that separated two peoples who were once one, Merin’s words and anger echoed back to her, chaining her down.
The guilt was like an avalanche, racing down Ish Rav Partha and covering her in an impossible weight of her own creation.
What had been done to these people was profoundly wrong, and if Kater was not here to take his share of the responsibility, Upala would have to do it for both of them, and for the people who had suffered under her.
“What is it you wish then, Garantika? I-I deny nothing you accuse me of. I see that now. We both deserved the ire of Rakhum from both Nalam Wast and Rogek Shad. I only wish to secure the release of those loyal to me, these three here, as well as the people you have taken. If each Rakhum death is a wound upon you, then wound yourself no longer. Leave these people and I will submit to your judgment.”
The man stared up at her for a moment, then nodded. He turned, making a motion to one of the assembled members of his group. A stout woman walked over, Upala seeing the scowl in her eyes through her helm as she approached.
“Prethil, take charge of the three prisoners. Once our ceremony with Upala is complete, you will take them back to Rogek Shad. Unharmed.”
Ceremony?
The woman nodded, turning on one heel and walking formally back to stand next to Merin.
The small action was a relief, at least their lives would be spared. She worried for Drew and the mysteries of rasi sakta that she had been unable to uncover, but she had hopes Merin might be able to find a treatment for the man. Her heart ached that she might not see him again, her body cried out for one last touch from him, but she had a higher responsibility and held her passions in check.
“Thank you, Garantika,” she said. “And my people?”
“You speak of the people of Rogek Shad as if they were your possessions. Half of the citizens will be released in the morning,” he said. “The other half once I have met with the leaders of Rogek Shad and Nalam Wast. They must prepare for what is coming.”
Garantika turned to the Yeti on his left, bowing deeply. “Cred rocha,” he said to the huge beast, his voice taking a guttural tone.
The Yeti grunted in unison, clearly understanding the man’s words. Garantika then turned away from her as the Yetis placed large, furred hands on her shoulders, grasping her firmly.
It would be easy to escape. Even if she could not access her fire at this altitude, she had other abilities at her disposal and neither the Rakhum nor the Yeti could harm her.
It would be easy, but her life had been about what had been easy and the pit in her stomach was the result.
The anger that burned Garantika’s eyes was present in the Rakhum that had served her as well. The countless men and women who had worked for her without her ever knowing them, sacrificed for her without ever being acknowledged. Even the Yeti, she had dissected and studied them, harvested and discarded.
Drew may have helped open the door of her morality, but now she swung it open of her own volition. As long as it meant the freedom of the people Garantika had taken, she would accept any punishment on behalf of herself and her brother. It was only just.
“Upala of the Manad Vhan,” Garantika’s voice boomed from his chest, carrying across the bridge and over the noise of the river, “I release you into the custody of these Yeti, who have asked for you in return for their assistance with our plans.”
She hung her head as a mixture of guilt and dread crept through her. All the regret she might have would not change her past, and whatever fate awaited her, she deserved.
“While it is true they cannot cause you harm, they are more lore wise than you know, and they will subdue you until we have brought our plans to fruition. Until we, the lowly Rakhum, bring about the end of not just you but all Manad Vhan.”
All Manad Vhan? Upala felt a new fear run up her spine like a tremor. Garantika spoke so confidently, and now threatened the whole of her people. Could he really threaten the City of Sands? Neither she nor Kater had even found the location of the city which supposedly was home to the rest of her kind.
“What can kill a god?” Garantika fixed her with his stare. “None but those who made them. Even now our agent crosses the boundaries of worlds, walking upon the very soil of Sirapothi itself! There she will retrace the steps of your great hero Orami Feram and return to undo his final works. Unlock the seals that bind the very creatures that made you and nearly drove you to extinction.”
What was Garantika talking about? They had her--she would take the blame!
He lifted his arms over his head, his expression one of pure joy.
“We will do nothing less than release the Dragons from their prisons in the mountains around us, returning your creators to complete your race’s destruction!”
Release the Dragons? Panic began to push through Upala, running through her veins like blood. They could not possibly have the knowledge, the capacity to release the Fears! Who were these people?
As they Yeti began to push her forward, she forced down every instinct that cried to use her power to free herself. Drew, Merin and the people of Rogek Shad were depending on her.
Garantika pulled off his helm and threw it to the stone ground of the bridge,
where it bounced and rolled to Upala’s feet. Behind him, in unison, the dozens of men and women did the same. Marked upon all of their foreheads she could see the same symbol, a white triangle.
As the Yeti led her away, Garantika began to lead the group in a chant, the happiness and anger in their voices mixing into one.
“Guard the Line!” he shouted.
“We have kept it secret!”
“Honor the Line!”
“For the Line is long!”
“Trust the Line!”
“It will end our suffering!”
Garantika peered into Upala’s eyes as the Yeti walked her past him, speaking in a voice low enough for only her to hear.
“Fear my daughter’s return. For she is the End of the Line.”
Chapter 14
Nima raced along the network of thin floating poles that made up the Caenola docks, struggling to keep up with Tanira. Ahead of her, Tanira ran along the wooden structure as if she had been borne to it, her pace frantic as if she were driven by some unforgiving taskmaster.
All of Caenola’s harbor was built like this, a crisscrossed mesh of long, thin poles floating on the water with canoes and catamarans tied to them.
There were also the mistwhales, who Val explained created the fog that enshrouded the harbor and were now a source of strange cow-like noises that Nima found it hard not to giggle at as they drifted in from the mist.
Beyond them in the shadows, Val waited, hopping back and forth between two mooring poles while scanning the dark for guards.
He had assured both Nima and Tanira that the docks were rarely guarded this time of night, yet he seemed nervous all the same. Nima supposed it would only take one cry of alarm for their entire plan to be sunk.
Reaching Val with her chest heaving from the exertion, Nima fought to keep her balance as she kept one foot on yet another long wooden pole floating in the ocean. Her other boot found a steadier surface as she placed it in the thin canoe Val was untying from its mooring.
