It was hours before her son walked towards her with something in his hands. He had the curly hair his father used to have, and was taller and thinner than Miko, and still innocent at eighteen. “Did you find anything?” She wanted to ask if he had found her Miko, but was afraid of the answer.
“No mother. There is one who could be a Midian, but I am not sure,” he said sadly. “One of them was Shevren. There were rings on his fingers that someone identified.”
That cleared up some of it. Shevren had found out somehow. If anything happened to Miko she would find out who had told and make him pay.
“The other body could be a Midian’s. It was taller than the others. Could it be the one father was meeting?” Tall. She remembered a tall Midian who had given her life back to her. If it was his son then she would mourn for him. “It might be.” She decided to find out who told Shevren anyway, for Oran’s sake.
Her son held out the object in his hands. It was a sword still in its badly scorched sheath. She took it from her son and pulled off what was left of the leather. She discarded it as she stared at the sword. A black handled blade with silver on the pommel and hilt. She had seen a sword like that once before. His son would have a similar one.
“Mother, do you know whose sword it is?”
“I do. It belonged to the son of a dear friend,” she said as he watched her curiously. “You must do something for me.”
“Anything, Mother.”
“You must take this to Summerhall in honor. I do not know if he was married or had any children, but you must take his sword back.” She looked closely at her son. “This is important to me.”
“I will do as you ask, of course.”
She smiled at her son in approval. She thought of Miko and hoped he was all right. If he was then he must have a good reason for not being here. Among the ruins of the stable, the bodies found so far were being dragged clear so they could be checked more closely to be sure of their identities.
She pulled her son closer to her with an arm on his shoulder, and hugged him. She still had a family to care for and a business to oversee. Whatever had happened, she would find out, but not today.
Chapter 16
Into the East
They reached Crecy a day earlier than expected, for which Coran was extremely grateful. The cabin was hot and confining, the food was either too spicy or poor in quality, or both. They had made a brief stop in Venusia, on the Sea of Calimus, but Miko had them stay below decks just in case.
Through the voyage the routine was the same, when Miko went on deck, Coran went on deck. When Miko ate with the captain, he stood silently nearby. His time to eat was when they were alone in their cabin. He was supposed to be the guard, after all.
The crew always gave him a wide berth wherever he went. They would even leave tasks partially done to keep out of his way. It did prove one thing. His disguise worked.
They left the ship after Miko thanked the Captain for a pleasant voyage. The Captain, courteous to Miko, seemed pleased to have Coran off his ship.
The docks were not very busy compared to the other harbors he had seen. The vessel they arrived on was only one of three in port. One of the others looked to be Midian. Unlike the other harbors, where people from many lands came to trade, here there were only Karands. He amended that as they passed a building where an Ithanian, judging by his appearance and dress, stepped out into the street, almost running into Miko. Two others followed and quickly pulled their buddy out of the way, with fearful glances in Coran’s direction.
“What did you do that for?” the first one asked, upset at being forced back.
“That one is an Anagassi.” One of the others pointed to Coran who wore the robe Miko provided. He called it an atiefa. It was open in front, and the red sash was clear to see. The first one gulped and looked ready to run. Coran didn’t even give the man a second look. Someone else had stopped to watch as well. A man with broad shoulders and curly hair touched with gray. His beard was streaked with gray as well. The dark green coat he wore and his features said he was a Midian. He didn’t have the look of a merchant to him. Perhaps the ship in the harbor was his. He was studying Coran. It was not in recognition, but more out of curiosity. Coran briefly locked eyes with the man. Whatever the man saw, it made him the first to look away.
They approached an opening in the sand colored walls of the town. The walls and most of the buildings appeared to be made of an adobe that was the same color as the rocky ground. There were no gates at the entrance to the city, but two Karands in baggy white pants and dark green shirts stopped them. They wore wide, curved blades at their sides that Miko said were called stayah. Both looked warily at Coran as if he were a snake about to strike at them.
“Your name and business,” one of them asked Miko evenly.
“Mikir. I am seeing a friend regarding a business proposition,” Miko replied. He sounded like he had been asked such questions before and was eager to be done with it.
“How long will you be staying?” the guard continued.
“A day or two. I will not know for sure until I speak with my friend.”
“I should warn you that the port could be closed at any time.” The guard glanced briefly at Coran again. “If that occurs you will be asked to leave, and I would not want any misunderstandings.”
“I thank you for the warning,” Miko said seriously. “I would not want to cause any trouble. I will just conduct my business and leave.”
“May you have a pleasant stay,” the guard told them, and moved aside so they could pass.
Coran was sure of one thing, he wasn’t going to be the one to start any trouble.
The buildings of Crecy were of the same material as the walls, and the roofs were made from clay tiles. The only people on the streets who seemed to notice them were armed men in those sleeveless green shirts called mey’eal, and a few others who wore the finer clothes of the wealthy. The rest of the people moved about with downcast eyes and solemn faces.
Miko had told him some of what to expect. Crecy was a town whose ownership had been contested many times in the past. The population of the town, and the surrounding region were Novelah Karands. That was one of the tribes of the Western Karands, or the followers of She’al. The current holders of the town were Eastern Karands, or the followers of Sha’elt, and belonged to Shiomi tribe. Sha’elt and She’al were supposedly the twin gods of the Karands, a brother and a sister. What the differences between them were beyond that he did not know, and Miko did not say. Either he thought it obvious, or it was not for outsiders to understand. The Sha’elts took over Crecy a few years ago, and were subjugating the populace. Private entrepreneurs sent men to raid the land as far as the mountains to the west, and sometimes brought back people to sell. Slavery was legal in Daes Shael. Fortunately the need for slaves was not very high or else the whole population of the town could be headed east for a life of eternal servitude. What he saw of the people here so far, he was not so sure they weren’t already. One thing he did notice was that there were no young men around the town except for the guards. Had they been taken for some reason, or did they leave?
They traversed the length of Crecy in an hour and passed through another opening in the walls where a gate should have been. The guards moved to question Miko until they saw Coran behind him. After a quick glance at each other, they went back to leaning against the wall. Coran waited to speak until they were far down the road leading south, and out of sight of the town walls.
“Where are we going?”
“About another mile south. A friend of mine lives along the coast,” Miko informed him. For a heavyset fellow he moved at a brisk pace and showed no signs of tiring. “The last time I was here he had a boat. We can use it to cross the narrows.”
“So why did you lie to the first guard and tell him you were staying in Crecy?”
“If I told him we were going south, he would have been suspicious, and might have started asking questions we do not wish to answer.”
“But won’t they be suspicious when they find out you lied?”
“Yes, but by then we will be long gone.”
True, but only if his friend still had the boat. “One thing I do not understand,” Coran questioned. “I thought all the Eastern ports were closed.”
“Yes. All except this one. I believe the local leader is trying to make some money by being the only place where goods can be traded between East and West. When the other cities hear of it, they will force him to close Crecy as well.” Miko did not sound very surprised as he explained the situation. Then again, he was a trader and they know how to make a profit.
“What about the slaves? Are they still taken east from here?”
“I do not know,” Miko shrugged. “I would assume so.”
Coran wondered. If a ship carried the slaves east there might be a way across the narrows that way. Not that he wanted to take it, but if the other way fell through, it was a possibility.
The road wound through a landscape with few trees, all small and browning, and steep, rocky hills. Grass was sparse along the road side. The sky was clear and it soon became warm. Very warm.
They had gone about three quarters of a mile when Coran heard a scraping sound. It could have been from someone stepping on stone or two stones rubbing together. He started to get an uneasy feeling. In the road ahead of them appeared a man in plain robes that looked like they had been worn for a long time. The stranger had a curved sword at his side, but he did not draw it. Coran had no doubt that others were hidden somewhere in the surrounding hills.
The man was not very old, in his twenties, and of medium height. His black hair was short and he was clean shaven. The man grinned at them as they stopped on the road in front of him.
“What is the meaning of this?” Miko demanded. He looked rather plain himself, not the successful trader he was. He could pass for a moderate one as he had in Crecy.
“I must apologize if I am mistaken, but you came from Crecy.” His voice sounded young too. “The Sha’elt hold Crecy and their slavers raid the surrounding towns. Now they also gather up young men to go fight some war for them. I see you out here alone and I have to ask myself who you are?” He finished and stared at them, waiting for an answer.
Coran thought that if he was telling the truth then they could as well. They were on the same side. The question was could they risk it? Miko would be a better judge of character than he was under these circumstances.
“You do not fear my guard?” Miko asked the young man.
“Fear him? Of course I do. I would be a complete fool if I did not. That is why my friends are up there.” The man pointed and they followed with their eyes. Four men in rumpled robes held bows, the knocked arrows trained on them. Coran sensed that they looked a little nervous doing it. He wondered how much of the fellows bravado was feigned. The archers were too far away if they really wanted to hit anybody.
Again Miko did not answer the question. “So you are out here doing what? Attacking lone men such as me instead of fighting to drive out the followers of Sha’elt?”
The man’s smile faltered. He became more uneasy than angry. “We are too few. We do what we can.”
Miko nodded in satisfaction. “I do not doubt your courage, but I had to be sure of who you are. I am Miko, a trader from Arencia.”
Coran was surprised to hear him give his real name. Obviously, Miko was certain he had heard the truth from the stranger.
“What is a trader from Arencia doing here?” the young Karand asked suspiciously.
“Fighting a common foe,” Miko answered slyly. “Perhaps we could go to your camp and discuss it?”
The man licked his lips and stared at Coran. “And let him get in close enough to kill me?”
Miko sighed. “He needs proof,” he said to Coran. “Tell him who you are.”
“Do we have time for this?” Coran asked.
“Do you have a better idea?” Miko countered.
Coran removed the cloth that covered his face. It was called a la’amod, and was separate from the kesu, or head covering. It seemed most Karands wrapped the kesu around to protect the face and did not use a la’amod. He assumed it must be particular to the Anagassi. “My name is Coran. I am from Summerhall.”
The man’s mouth fell open. “A Midian? Why are you here?”
“Like my friend told you, fighting a common enemy.”
The man seemed to consider that before answering. “You may come to my camp.”
They followed the man, who gave his name as Ruan, off the road and over several hills until they came to a trickling stream in a narrow ravine. They followed the stream until the two cliff sides fell away to an open area surrounded by more cliffs. Five blankets were rolled up nearby.
Ruan and his friends sat down in a circle around each other, crossing their legs. Coran and Miko joined them.
Ruan was the first to speak. “They come here and take our people. They treat us like cattle. We were gone when they came to our village and rounded up all the young men. They took a few of the women as well. To be sold as horses are sold.” He quivered with anger and had to calm down before continuing. “Can you tell me why you are here now?”
The man was open and honest. Coran could not afford to be as trusting, but he had already revealed his identity. “The West is preparing for war.” That much was true. At least some of the West was. “People have crossed over the Eastern Sea and the Sha’elt have joined them.” Whether they were willing or not, that they had joined was one of the proofs Stemis had sent him to find. “When they are ready, they will attack Midia. I was sent to find out information. How many there are, where they are, that sort of thing. It is vital that I find what I need to know and get it back to Summerhall.”
Ruan was thoughtful for a time. The other four remained silent, looking to Ruan to make any decisions. “How does this help my people? How does this help my family? My sister was on her way back home when she was taken by the slavers to Crecy. That was three days ago. Can you bring her back to me?” By the end of his speech the anger was back in his voice, he stood and started pacing to calm himself down.
“I am sorry for your sister, but my information will help many others. It could give us the advantage we need. If the Sha’elt are allied with the newcomers, then defeating them will weaken them all.” Coran wanted to help Ruan, but he did not know what he could do. Not against the forces of Crecy.
Miko added his part. “She’al says that the followers of Sha’elt are not our greatest enemy. Those who bring the darkness with them from across the sea will be our doom. It is also said that we must aid the other people of the West as best we can. Our mission is vital to that end.”
Coran looked to Miko in surprise. “You know about the invaders, and what it means?”
“Yes, that is why I agreed to come.”
“What are you telling me?” a look of shock was on Ruan’s face, “who are these people you speak of?” Then he gasped, “Are they sent by the Destroyer?”
“We believe so, but that is one of the things I hope to find out,” Coran told him.
Ruan shook his head in disbelief. “I did not know. We always seem to be the last people to know what is happening in the world.” Then he met Coran’s eyes with a look of determination. “Your mission is far more important than mine. I will help you in any way I can.”
“We were on our way to see Bayed.” Miko stopped at uncomfortable looks that passed between the Karandi. “What is it?”
It was Ruan who answered. “Bayed is dead. I do not know how. It must have been the Shiomi from Crecy.”
Miko sighed in a moment of grief for his friend. “We needed his boat to cross the narrows.”
“I know where it is,” Ruan informed them. “Bayed hid it when soldiers from Crecy started burning boats all along the coast.”
“Then take us to it,” Coran put in. “We will cross tonight.” There was no reason for delay, and many reasons to hurry.
Aft
er Ruan had a brief exchange with his comrades, they started gathering up their belongings. Ruan slung his pack and bedroll over one shoulder and came to stand by Coran. Coran thought there was something strange in the way the Karand was looking at him, all five of them.
“What is it?” he finally asked.
“It is nothing, only...” Ruan didn’t finish.
“Go on,” Coran prompted him.
“You are different.”
“I am a Midian,” Coran stated the obvious.
“No, not that. Well, actually, yes. It is difficult to explain.”
“Just tell me.”
“You are not Anagassi, yet you move like one, and look like one.”
Coran shrugged. “I was trained as a warrior, maybe, that is it.”
“Maybe.” He did not sound convinced. “I would not interfere with such an important mission, but I must ask. When you are finished with what you must do in Daes Shael, will you come back and help my people?”
As Ruan spoke, Coran could feel a fork in the path he had chosen. His answer would take him down one of them. He wanted to help the Karands, but could he commit himself to such a task? He tried to think of what the right thing to do was, and that decided him. “If I survive I will return. I will help you free Crecy if I can, but I make no promises. After that is done I must go home.”
Ruan had a wide smile on his face. “Good. I think that She’al has sent you to us.”
Coran pushed the small boat off the gravel beach. He jumped on board just as a wave lapped against his boot. The ten foot long boat rocked in the water as he took his seat at the bow. Miko pulled back on the oars, propelling them further from the shore. The sun was almost below the horizon, its red-orange light radiating out from behind Ruan as he waved from the beach, Coran waved back. A smile hid the grimace he felt. Ruan was passionate enough about driving out the enemy, but he had no idea how. He thought all he had to do was gather an army and charge into Crecy. Coran had to make some pointed suggestions to hold off the enthusiast from doing anything stupid. By the time he left the young Karand on the beach, Ruan was convinced that Coran would be leading the attack. The real problem was that Coran was starting to feel responsible for the young man. Then he realized that he thought of Ruan as young when he had to be older than himself. That was a problem for later. He had to survive long enough to do anything about it.
Fire And Ice (Book 1) Page 22
