“Some hard tack and dried meat,” a third reported.
“Let me see the food,” Alec asked, desiring to determine if it was edible for humans. He looked at it carefully with all his senses, sniffed it, then broke a piece off and tasted it. The material was a basic baked travel bread, without flavor, but not harmful.
“Alright, let’s move everything back on the boat, and float it down river a little bit to beach it on the other shore,” Alec suggested. “We can get it out of sight before the next boat comes…and put the wounded on the boat as the easiest way for them to cross the river.”
***“Sergeant, take some of these spades and have a pit dug to bury the dead lacertii in,” Alec motioned to a nearby woman. “Steed, you and Waln go ahead and develop several pits and mounds in this area that can hide 30 people altogether, as quickly as possible. Since Allisma will be unavailable for a few days, we may have to use a pair of people as bait to keep luring the lacertii to land here for us,” he instructed.
Activity commenced all about the battle site. “There were a dozen on the boat. We can use the arrows; it’s a gift to have them delivered. I can’t fathom the need for the picks and the shovels though,” Nathaniel commented.
Alec watch several men carefully carry Allisma to the boat as the two wounded soldiers brought themselves forward, and the dead man from the Nineteenth was carried on as well. Alec and Nathaniel rode the boat across the river, then walked back to where Alec had left his sword and bag an hour before. After they walked back to the village, Alec began making a broth from the plants he had collected.
Imelda and a patrol from the cavalry returned, and were presented with the story of all that had transpired. They immediately went down to the captured boat to see it, and when they returned, they set each horse to work bringing posts up from the boat. “We’ll be able to build sound cabins with this timber,” Imelda said.
As the village bustled with work that afternoon, a series of cries from the lookout alerted them to the pending arrival of another boat. Imelda began leading a party on horseback around the hill to be ready to charge across the river. “Yula, let’s get our horses and get ready to cross the river to heal any wounds,” Alec urged the tall blond. He saddled up two animals, and led them towards the river valley, with Yula walking beside him.
They arrived at the river in time to see Imelda’s cavalry already across the river, and the last of the battle finishing up with arrows raining on the remaining lacertii from three Dominion sites. There were no injuries to the Dominion forces this time. The boat carried mostly food and more wooden posts, and it too was floated across the river and unloaded on the side of the river with the bluffs and the Dominion encampment.
A routine quickly developed, and three or four boats were ambushed everyday. Most boats carried exclusively food supplies, and Alec felt good to know that the besieging lacertii army would soon feel the pinch of reduced rations. Shaiss and Alder kept watch one night and confirmed three boats went past, which determined Alec to find a way to man the river post during darkness as well as light. The two light ingenairii were assigned to night shifts down on the flat side of the river to watch the boats approach, and a campfire was kept burning at night to lure the lacertii into the trap.
Because of the heavy demand on the light ingenairii, they left the river unguarded every third night. Everyone in the camp appreciated the nights without ambush duty, and a series of dances and festivities occurred every third night.
Alec nursed Allisma back to health, receiving the livers from the small game that the cavalry hunters brought in. He fed them to Allisma for four days, much to her displeasure, but the herbs, livers, Alec’s healing power, and rest all had her fully recovered physically at the end of that time. She remained shy about battle though, after her experience, and Alec let her instead concentrate her ingenaire powers on working with Yula to tend the plants they selected for cultivation.
I’ll go out there if you want me to, Alec,” she told him. “But I prefer not to.” Alec considered the success the troop had during her days of convalescence, and concluded that she wouldn’t be desperately needed. “I’m going to write a letter to Bethany about our adventures. Would you like for me to tell her anything?” the girl asked him. He took it as a sure indication that she was feeling better, and declined to send any specific message.
“Just tell her I said ‘hello,’” he replied.
A village of small cabins were built with the wood salvaged from the lacertii ships, and a feel of permanency settled over the company in the wilderness. After two weeks Imelda sent a team of riders back to Goldenfields, carrying dispatches and reports from Alec and others, along with Allisma’s letter.
Chapter 32 – Encounters Along the River
Nathaniel and Alec shared a cabin and spent a great deal of time together talking about past days in their friendship and speculating about the future. “It’s been nearly a month now that the lacertii have had their food supply virtually cut off. Do you think they have any clue we’re up here?” Alec asked one afternoon as they sat in front of their cabin and watched people stroll about. Although scouts and pickets were maintained, no one in the camp feared detection.
“They have to know something’s going on. They receive the boats that get through every third night. Those onboard can account that more boats and supplies had been sent but not what happened to them along the way. They may be able to deduce nothing wand watin the mountains and guess something is happening along the course of the river. We can’t know how tight their supplies have been. If they had a stockpile, they may be sustaining themselves; but if they were living hand to mouth, they’ll be desperate,” Nathaniel answered.
“If I were them and not ready to attack Goldenfields, I’d send a force up river to solve the problem,” the warrior ingenaire continued.
“Alec! Alec!” an urgent shout caught their attention. A thin girl, Kinsey the spirit ingenaire, was running towards them as fast as her long legs would travel. Alec vaguely recollected seeing Kinsey during his apprenticeship, and later in Goldenfields, but he’d never interacted with her. He was glad to have every ingenaire along who wanted to come on this venture, but he hadn’t had any idea how to take advantage of Kinsey’s abilities and so far he sensed she had provided some counseling to a few soldiers but little else.
“Alec, this boat is different. I feel something strongly about someone – one of the lacertii – on this boat. We mustn’t kill them all,” she said with breathless determination, tufts of hair wildly out of place after her long sprint to see him.
Alec looked at Kinsey, stunned by her message, and he looked at Nathaniel, who appeared equally uncertain.
“Hurry, Alec,” the boat is almost within range of attack,” Kinsey said emphatically, reaching out to grab his shoulder.
“Nathaniel, use your powers to get down there as fast as possible to prevent wholesale slaughter,” Alec said impulsively. Something about Kinsey’s message struck a chord deep within him, pressing him to act. “I’ll get additional forces, and come down behind you to see if we can clarify Kinsey’s intuition.”
Without hesitation Nathaniel jumped from Alec’s side and moved with dazzling speed towards the river. “Imelda,” Alec called, knowing as he did so that the head of the cavalry was likely to be out of camp, as she seemed to be every day. “Cavalry commander,” he shouted, and taking Kinsey with him, ran to the corral to mount a ride. He called to everyone he saw to come join him, ignoring their questions about why.
Several soldiers heeded his request, and he had a dozen men and women with him as he reached the river bank. Looking out he saw that Nathaniel had arrived too late to prevent the usual slaughter, and no lacertii appeared alive. “Sorry, Kinsey. We didn’t act fast enough,” he told the girl on the horse next to him.
“I don’t feel the chance is gone,” she replied, shading her eyes with her hand to look further. “Let’s go look at the boat.” Their horses carried them across the river, and they angle
d away from Nathaniel and the other soldiers, moving straight to the beached craft, where Kinsey dismounted and stepped onto the boat.
“Here, Alec! Look here!” she called excitedly, bending over in the boat.
Several of the soldiers looked in her direction, and Alec canted over to join her, feeling strangely compelled to follow her. “Here, this one is alive! This is the one I felt!” sh shouted.
Alec arrived as Kinsey pulled out her pocket knife, and quickly slit the binding that held the gag that filled the lacerta’s mouth with wadded cloth. Kinsey pulled the material out of the bound creature’s mouth, and Alec heard a large intake of air as he knelt beside Kinsey.
“Thank you,” the lacerta spoke in a voice that had a sing-song lilt, though a gravelly timber, and Alec realized their captive was a female, a fact that was confirmed when he looked at the shape of her body.
“I thought you were going to slit my throat when you pulled out your knife,” the lacerta said.
“We may yet do so,” Nathaniel said over Alec’s shoulder as he joined the tableau. “Why are you tied up like this?”
“I am the Marchioness Rosebay,” she answered. Kinsey slid her knife through the ropes that bound the lacerta’s arms behind her back. The freed captive tried to stretch the appendages out, and Alec sensed the pain she felt after having her arms tied in one pose for a long time. He reached and placed his hand on her right arm, using his health vision and healing powers to find the right way to remove the stress in her limb, then reached across her and soothed the other as well.
She looked up at Alec in astonishment. “Thank you,” the lacerta said. “I can’t tell you how long I’ve been tied up like that.” Kinsey looked from Rosebay to Alec, then back at the lacerta.
“Why were you tied up?” Nathaniel repeated his question in a neutral tone. Kinsey looked at him in a meaningful way, but Alec was not able to interpret Nathaniel’s attitude.
“I was tied up so that I would not run away or try to kill myself,” Rosebay replied. She looked around as more of the Dominion soldiers gathered about them. Alec realized how intimidating the sight must be for her.
“Let’s take our guest to another area for interrogation,” Alec suggested. “Nathaniel and Kinsey, come with me. The rest of you go ahead and dispose of the boat and the cargo,” he said loudly.
Kinsey reached down to cut the cords around the lacerta’s knees and feet, and Alec again reached out to restore health to the flesh and remove the pain of long confinement.
“Nathaniel, would you take Rosebay over to that set of rocks over there?” Kinsey pointed. “I’d like to talk to Alec for a moment.”
Nathaniel looked at Alec, who nodded his assent, and directed the lacerta in the indicated direction, taking care not to touch her, Alec noted.
Alec and Kinsey walked slowly behind the other two, lagging until they were out of earshot of everyone else. “Well?” Alec asked. “We have this lacerta who you felt was so important. What happens now?”
Kinsey hesitated. “Let’s not leave her alone with Nathaniel too long. He clearly doesn’t like her at all. I’m not sure what happens next. I know I felt that she was important to our future somehow, and she’s obviously a nice person.”
Alec stared at Kinsey. “A nice person? She’s a lacerta,” he said shortly.
“She has feelings just like you or me. She has very nice feelings, and a good soul. She has a bit of a crush on you already, like all the other girls, you know,” Kinsey said with a straight face.
“A crush?” Alec said in a strangled voice.
Kinsey gave a mischievous smile. “Maybe not a crush exactly, but you took away the pain in her arms. It’s been a long time since someone performed a nice gesture for her, and it came from such an unexpected source. She was petrified of being captured by us, and then you performed such a kind healing for her when she was prepared for the worst things to happen,” Kinsey explained.
“What are we going to do with her? Take her back to camp? Can you imagine what that will stir up among our people?” Alec asked, exasperated by the uncertain situation the girl had created.
“Alec, I don’t have those answers,” Kinsey said tearfully. “I just know the feeling I got, that we had to save her.” She stopped and looked over at where Nathaniel stood guard over the lacerta. “Let’s go talk to her and see what develops.”
Alec stood and looked at Kinsey, then shrugged in frustration, and walked over to the two who were waiting. “We don’t know why your people are attacking our nation,” Alec began. “We were living in peace, and now we are under attack from a large army. What can you tell us about why you are attacking us?” he squatted down to be at eye level with the lacerta.
“I am sorry about that, truly sorry,” his captive replied. “I was against this conflict from the first time I heard it mentioned, but most of the other Regents believed the generals that it would be a simple matter to defeat your race and find a place of refuge for our people.”
“There are lacertii who are against this war?” Alec asked in surprise. He had always imagined that the lacertii were a monolithic group that would all be at war with the Dominion.
“We have had decades of peace since my great-grandfather united our nations into a single empire. Then we were attacked ourselves on our east, by a large nation that is invading and conquering our lands. We’re desperate for a place to flee to. These generals believed we could conquer your lands and move our people here to live in safety,” Rosebay replied.
“With my young cousin as king, there is a Council of Regents running the government, and the Generals convinced a bare majority of the Regents to go to war. I was the leader of the Regents opposed to the war, and so they eventually concluded they needed to remove me, it seems. I was kidnapped from my chambers, trussed up, and was being shipped to be a ‘bride’ for one of the generals at the front.”
Alec goggled at the notion of kidnapping someone so powerful, but then he remembered that his own nation’s king had been poisoned to remove from the throne.
“What do we do with you now?” Alec asked her directly.
“Please don’t send me to the war. I’ll be used and killed,” she said pleadingly.
“Well, I can’t see any future for you staying with us. You’ll be in danger here too,” Alec said bluntly. “Can we send you back to your people? What will happen? Will they just kidnap you again or murder you?”
“If I go back and tell the other Regents what has happened to me, I believe I could convince them to stop the war,” the lacerta said earnestly, sitting up with excitement.
“They’ll just say you are a puppet of us, the humans,” Nathaniel interjected. “They won’t let anyone trust you.”
“I’ll think about what to do,” Alec said. “Kinsey, you stay here with Rosebay,” he directed, not able to reach a decision about what to do with their captive.
“Tell your leader that I can be helpful,” Rosebay pleaded, reaching out to take Alec’s hand. “Both our peoples will be better off if we work together to end this war immediately.”
He held her hand for a second, then walked away with Nathaniel. “Oh Lord, what am I to do?” he moaned with genuine anguish. Nathaniel looked at him with sympathetic concern.
They walked back to where the boat was being salvaged. The soldiers stopped to look at him silently, then returned to their tasks. Alec stood and observed the work, then went to his horse. “Let’s go see if Imelda is in the camp,” he said abruptly, and spurred Walnut across the river.
“Is Imelda in camp?” Alec asked as he rode to the corral where the mounts were kept.
“She’s in her cabin,” a cavalryman replied. “She just returned from a long trip.”
Alec thanked the man and ran quickly across the camp to the cabin where Imelda stayed. “Wait out here; I’ll be back when we’re done,” he instructed Nathaniel peremptorily and burst into Imelda’s cabin to discuss the unfolding crisis.
He stopped short inside the cabin. Im
elda stood facing him, having just stripped off her riding habit, and stood wearing only a cropped, thin sleeveless half undershirt and riding shorts. Her riding gear was slumped in a corner. Alec stood stock still and gazed at the cavalry commander for a long second as she steadily returned his stare. He was frozen by an unexpected eruption of emotions that the cascade of events seemed to have unleashed; surprise, respect, friendship, affection, desire all came to the forefront of his thoughts as he looked at the strong woman who appeared for the moment to be vulnerable. He’d been waiting for so long for a relationship, and had in his heart begun to accept that Bethany would forever be unavailable for him.
“Imelda,” Alec said. He stepped forward one more step, so that they were face to face, just inches separating them. “Imelda,”aidaid again, and hesitated as he imagined pressing his lips against hers.
Imelda saw the powerful emotions that were consuming Alec. His cheeks were flushed, and his eyes dilated. Her memories of Alec flashed through her consciousness – the scar she had given him, the battle she had watched him wage to save Duke Toulon and the injury he sustained, along with the campaign in Bondell before his long months of absence. She thought too about the strong affection she had seen Alec and Bethany share during their sortie to Bondell, and the friendship she had struck up with the water ingenaire. Any motion she made to encourage him at this moment could lead to entanglement that she knew she would enjoy, but with possible consequences she feared.
“We don’t have time for this. It’s not right,” she said with deep emotion after a long internal battle, and took a step back.
“Will we ever have time?” Alec asked as he too stepped away.
“Alec, I’ve stayed away from camp, and from you, on this assignment maybe partially wanting to make sure this sort of thing wouldn’t happen,” Imelda said in a fierce tone. Alec couldn’t decipher if she was angry with him, or angry with herself.
The Lifesaving Power: Goldenfields and Stronghold Page 32
