The Broken Kingdom

by Sarah Chapman

  ‘It is nice to live in a mountain.’ Vearla said, surprised, her eyes on him. ‘No… I do not mind, the mountain does not mind…’ Vearla shook her head. ‘No… many… many died in the mountain, I… I try to ignore… but it was a mountain, it called my attention and I felt…’

  ‘I am sorry, Mistress.’ Recha replied sincerely.

  ‘It is worse…’ Vearla suddenly sobbed, ‘the ehlkrid come closer now, they must have… the creatures within the mountain must have been… must have been mixed… all gone at once, and now there are too few left for the ehlkrid to… to eat… and so they come closer, Recha…’

  ‘I… I’m not sure I understand.’

  Vearla looked up at him, her eyes wide with fright. ‘I fear for the future too, Recha, my poor mountain, all those within, but it is worse, because now… now the ehlkrid will turn to humans, to you and your friends, and I do not want to see… I do not want you all to die again…’

  ‘Mistress, we have been able to defend ourselves in the past, and surely our shields will be enough!’

  Vearla looked away, her head bowed. She gave Recha no answer.

  Chapter 3

  When Lillia finally found Vann she almost didn’t recognize him. It was the first time in she didn’t know how long she’d seen him in something other than a submariner’s uniform.

  ‘Vann,’ she breathed, she knew he had resigned but to actually see it. ‘Vann, where have you been?’ she said more firmly.

  They were down by the docks. Vann smelt rather strongly of fish, mainly because of the fish he had slung over his shoulder. He was dressed in coarse fisherman’s clothes.

  He looked surprised to see her. ‘Around.’ he shrugged. His voice was hoarse.

  ‘Where have you been sleeping? I’ve been looking all over for you! You didn’t come to the Square to organize your leave!’

  ‘I’ve been around. And it’s not leave, Lillia, I quit.’

  ‘The Commander put it through as extended leave. You have wages to collect, a job, a place to stay are supposed to be organized for you!’ The Coastside submariners were not just abandoned to drift when they left the submariners after all.

  ‘It’s not leave. I quit.’ he repeated. ‘I don’t want their help.’

  ‘Why are you fishing?’ she huffed, angry and worried.

  ‘I need to eat, Lillia, and I don’t have any money. I’m the Hero of Coastside,’ he smiled bitterly, his grey eyes bleak, ‘the fishers took me on as an apprentice.’

  ‘You’ll get money. Oh, I told you to save up!’

  ‘I never thought I’d quit.’ His expression changed. For a moment he looked as though he might cry. But then it was gone. ‘Excuse me, Lillia, I have work to do.’

  Vann began walking again, Lillia kept pace.

  ‘Where have you been staying?’ Lillia insisted.

  ‘Around.’ Vann shrugged.

  ‘Vann, if I get eaten by leapers because I go out to the side beach looking for you, it’s going to be your fault!’ she nearly screamed at him.

  Vann stopped, startled. ‘Why would you go to the side beach, it’s dangerous there, Lillia!’ and he frowned darkly at her, a hint of the old Vann coming back.

  ‘Because no one knows where you are and I’m worried about you!’

  He seemed surprised at the thought, his eyes wide. Then his frown returned. ‘I told you Lillia, I’ve been staying around.’ he almost looked embarrassed. ‘I don’t like staying with the fishers, anyone. All they do is talk about Riley.’ his voice hardened and became very cold.

  Lillia sighed. Then she grabbed his sleeve. ‘Vann, you can stay on my couch.’

  ‘I don’t want to stay on your couch!’ he said, indignant.

  ’Then find somewhere else to stay that isn’t ‘around’! Do you want me to get eaten?!’

  ‘Just stay away from the side beach, Lillia!’

  ‘No!’

  They glared at each for long moments.

  ‘Please, Vann.’ Lillia said in a softer tone. ‘I’m worried about you. You may not believe it, but you are my friend.’

  He looked away for a moment.

  ‘Fine.’ he finally muttered. ‘But excuse me, I still have work to do.’

  ‘Alright. Make sure you shower before you come in.’

  He shot her an injured look over his shoulder as he walked away.

  Vann pulled the same routine with Lillia as he had in the Blocks. He came in late (but at least not smelling of fish), and left early.

  Lillia wasn’t sure what he did in the time he wasn’t working, but she was at least relieved he’d found himself a job.

  Lillia found she just couldn’t get up early enough to make sure he ate. Vann was starting to look a little thin. So she made him breakfast late at night and left it by her couch where he couldn’t possibly miss it.

  At first he rather bluntly ignored the food.

  She kept trying. He kept such odd hours that it was really the only interaction she had with him.

  Then one night he returned much earlier than usual, while she was in the kitchen.

  ‘Lillia!’ he called at her angrily. She nearly jumped.

  ‘Vann?’ she looked over her shoulder at him. ‘You’re home.’

  ‘This isn’t my home. I don’t have a home.’

  Lillia frowned but said nothing.

  He stalked into the kitchen. ‘Stop doing this, I don’t want your help!’

  ‘You can ignore the food I make you if you want, Vann. But I can’t stop. You look terrible.’

  ‘Good.’

  Lillia shot him an exasperated look. Then she tried to calm down. ‘Vann, I can be relieved a threat to Coastside is gone and be sorry a young woman is dead at the same time.’

  He glowered at her, a dangerous coolness to his gaze.

  ‘You need to eat more.’

  ‘It’s not your business.’

  ‘Pretend all you like. Now get out of my way, please. I’m trying to cook.’

  When they started painting the mural it was hard not to notice. Weeks had passed but the talk didn’t die down. The defeat of the nefarious gemeng Riley was the first real blow struck in the perpetual war against the gemengs. It was going to be the talk of Coastside and Astar for a very long time. For the rest of his life.

  He stared at the mural being painted on the side of a prominent building in Coastside. The posters posted around the city were only temporary. This mural, based on the photos, was to last years, and if properly maintained, as it was intended to be, perhaps as long as Coastside existed.

  Vann had never felt more alone. Each day he felt even more isolated. He didn’t know how he could continue this. But as always… there was no alternative.

  He headed back to Lillia’s place early that day.

  She looked up when he entered, that familiar mix of surprise, worry and relief on her face.

  ‘Vann,’ she greeted him.

  ‘You were asked to help paint the mural.’ he stated.

  She nodded. ‘Mm,’ she turned back to the painting she was currently working on. It was too early to say what it was. ‘I was. I turned it down.’

  ‘I know. Why?’

  ‘I don’t want to help, Vann. I know how it would upset you.’

  ‘Is that all?’ he pushed. It hurt more than he could say that Lillia was no different to anyone else.

  ‘As I’ve said before, I do regret the death of the young woman I met. I would not feel right painting a celebration of that. I told them I’m too busy at the moment to help.’

  But she did not regret it enough to think the attack had been wrong, he knew. She didn’t feel enough.

  He didn’t feel like being here anymore. So he left, to do what he mostly did during his time off.

  He ran through the back-alleys of the city, he helped the dockhands unload crates, he did any sort of physical work he could find. It helped him keep his mind off things, if he pushed himself hard enough.

  Chapter 4

  When Messenger f
inally arrived in Coastside he was not completely surprised to find Vann had quit the submariners. Vann proved somewhat difficult to find. Messenger quickly learnt he was living with a woman, Lillia. But she didn’t seem to know where he spent his time.

  Messenger finally decided to just wait down by the docks. Vann was a fisherman now. He’d turn up there eventually.

  ‘Messenger!’ Vann greeted him, surprised and oddly relieved to see him.

  ‘Vann.’ Messenger smiled as he looked him up and down. ‘You look well.’

  Vann smiled at the lie. ‘What are you doing here?’ he asked.

  ‘Well, I said I’d come up with a reason to visit Coastside, and I did. Now, are you going to show me around?’

  ‘Sure. I’m done for the day.’ It was not really day anymore, more like late afternoon or early evening. ‘Let me get changed. I’m told I smell like fish.’

  ‘Now who would say a thing like that?’

  They headed back to Lillia’s home, chatting about inconsequential things. Vann showered and changed. Then they headed out to places Vann had not visited in what felt like a lifetime. He took Messenger on a route through the theatre district to a place he used to eat, but was not hugely popular with other submariners. He could not bear to talk to the submariners. In his civilian clothes, with his lost weight and tired look, most of the people he knew would not have recognized him.

  ‘I hope you don’t mind a little alcohol.’ Vann said as they sat.

  ‘No. I’ve had some in Cavachi. So, what do you usually eat around here?’

  ‘Fish mostly. This isn’t the nicest restaurant in town. The Leili is much more popular.’

  ‘I might try it out.’

  ‘What’s this Astarian submarine I’ve been hearing about?’ Messenger asked after a moment.

  Vann shrugged. ‘Astar funded the building of it and crewed it. It’s been renamed now, the Astarian crew couldn’t handle it. I heard the captain snapped and went a bit nuts. The crew was trained by Astarians who had never actually served on a submarine, I don’t think they prepared the crew properly for what it’s like down there.’

  ‘Huh. But I heard a Coastside submariner was let go and they were blaming the Astarians for it-’

  ‘Pssh,’ Vann made a derisive noise, ‘it was no one’s fault but his own. After the Astarians couldn’t handle the sub, some of the submariners said they ought to get free alcohol, since clearly it’s necessary for the job. It was mostly a joke, but one guy was mouthing off about how it was the duty of the women here to- anyway, some girl smashed a glass over his head, and he was kicked out of the submariners.’

  ‘Ah.’ Messenger replied.

  After that they lapsed into silence. It was a heavy silence.

  ‘I heard they gave you a commendation too.’ Vann finally ventured.

  Messenger grimaced. ‘Yeah. It’s on my other uniform.’

  ‘I don’t understand.’ Vann rubbed his forehead. ‘Why now? It doesn’t make any sense for them to do this now.’

  Messenger sighed. ‘No. You know Garrondin was destroyed?’

  Vann shook his head.

  ‘It was not long after the ehlkrid came. It was pretty bad. There’s not much left… the ehlkrid ate them.’ he was silent for a moment. ‘The entire town. Gone. Adults, children, everyone… There was a big panic while that was happening.’

  ‘They knew?’

  ‘Yup. They knew while it was happening. They weren’t going to send any infantry out there with what was going on. Astar was terrified. But then… they just left. They were so close, Vann, so damn close, but the ehlkrid never even tried to break the shields. They ate the people of Garrondin… and just left.’

  He was silent a moment. ‘I think that, more than anything, gave Astar a sense of security where the ehlkrid are concerned. With what Riley said, with the valkar shields keeping them away, and with the results from examining an ehlkrid body, Astar didn’t consider the ehlkrid an immediate threat. Riley, on the other hand, united the strongest gemengs known to man, taught them to fight as a team, and happens to know an awful lot about the defences of Coastside and Astar. What it basically came down to Vann, was Riley was considered a far bigger threat.’

  ‘But still… surely they could have waited?’

  Messenger shook his head. ‘They might have. But it wasn’t just a military decision. The charges were laid on the second visit to the caves. Not that I knew any of this at the time. There was never any question of if, only when. The entire council voted on it – barring the Coastside representative, sorry, I don’t know his name. I think your Commander ruffled a few feathers…’

  Vann nodded, ‘mmm, when Mr Geiba was here… I guess we’re still being punished for not involving Astar in the attack on Molk. I guess they aren’t telling us about their military operations anymore either.’

  ‘You make our council sound so childish.’ And Messenger smiled, drawing a half-hearted smile from Vann in return. ‘Anyway, the Coastside representative hasn’t been present at all the Council meetings, from what I understand.’

  Vann felt an unexpected rush of relief. At least we weren’t part of it… we’re just happy about it. His relief disappeared in a bitter instant.

  ‘Anyway, I don’t know if everyone was happy with the decision, but everyone at the meeting voted for it. But I think one thing was clear from the start, they didn’t want to blow up the valkar who accompanies her. Aerlid. This was the only time he had ever gone any distance from the caves. Maybe if he’d ventured out frequently… but the council seemed to think this might be their only chance to get her, her tribe and not the valkar.’

  He sighed.

  Vann was silent. ‘Everyone’s happy.’ he finally said. ‘Everyone thinks it’s great.’

  ‘Well, compared to what’s happening in Astar, the Coastsiders are practically sympathetic to her. I can understand how they view Riley. I can’t see this was ever going to end any other way for her. Gemengs who enter Astar don’t just leave. But children were in those caves. The entire people.’ He rubbed his eyes. An aura of deep disappointment, but an expected disappointment, permeated him. ‘And if I can’t make people understand that, then relations between humans and gemengs will never change.’

  Messenger stayed for a while. Vann ventured forth from his isolation to show him around Coastside. While Messenger was with him, he even bore talking to other people.

  Of course, whenever anyone talked to the new Astarian Riley was brought up. But Messenger had a way of speaking, a way of turning the conversation away from Riley and to the others that had inhabited those caves, that could make someone pause for a second. Think.

  It lifted Vann’s spirits slightly but also embittered him. No word he said for Riley or the gemengs mattered. Even when he didn’t mention her name, people associated him with her now. No thought he had mattered because it was so easy to brush it off as due to an infatuation with Riley.

  Messenger turned away from a beautiful Coastside woman and back to Vann. His mouth was twisted in something between bitterness and disgust. Now nearly every moment they spent out socialising Messenger was accosted by people wanting his opinion.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ Vann said, seeing the look on his face. Having to explain to a beautiful woman why killing children might not be a good thing did nothing for her attractiveness. Why, if her opinions on gemengs had never come up Messenger might have found her quite pleasing. ‘This probably isn’t the best time to visit Coastside.’ he continued.

  ‘Well, it’s not a good time to visit anywhere. Ah… a part of me hopes I don’t have to deal with gemengs again, Vann. How could I try and build an alliance with them when I know what my side might do to them?’

  ‘I don’t know. I honestly don’t know.’

  ‘Well, it’s not likely to come up. I fear the ehlkrid are doing a good job of finishing them off.’

  ‘But you know where they came from.’

  Messenger nodded. ‘Hah, we might have a whole new race of gemengs
created by these ehlkrid. But they’d have to find some humans first.’

  Messenger left a few days later. He still had a job to do back in Astar after all.

  And once again, Vann was utterly alone.

  Chapter 5

  The night was bright. The shield around Astar gleamed softly, like it had every night for the last several months. She had no trouble remembering what night was like though, she only had to go inside the unlit dormitories, and she would be plunged into heavy darkness.

  Jillia faced away from the dormitories, away from her family and friends gathered in the doorways. They didn’t spend as much time outside the dormitories anymore. If there had been lights inside their homes, they would have retreated fully inside the dormitories and closed the unlockable doors and waited fearfully for daylight.

  Jillia’s sharp eyes roved across the night sky. She shivered as a shadow darted across the sky, blotting out stars for a brief moment. Ehlkrid.

  Nobody else had noticed, if they had she would have heard the stifled noises of unease, heard people head back inside the dormitories.

  Mostly, everyone tried to ignore the shadows that prowled just past the wall and shield. Jillia wasn’t entirely sure why she insisted on standing out in the cold, away from everyone, watching.

  Perhaps it was because she suspected she would one day meet her end at the claws or teeth of an ehlkrid. Like the people of Garrondin. She remembered that night too clearly. All the human civilians were escorted to the shelters, sirens sounded throughout the night, calling the alarm.

  She’d stood not far from where she was now, in her unit, her SIGPEW ready. Human and gemeng soldiers stood side by side as disjointed reports came in from Predators.

  There was no way to leave. She knew that. To leave would have required pulling the shield down. And she’d been stationed here by the wall, not by the supply tunnels that could be carefully unshielded to allow passage. I had no choice, there was no way for me to leave. She remembered the uncertainty, the confusion. No one had really known what was going on.

  Garrondin was a few hours walk away. Yet somehow, somehow… they’d heard faint screams, cries for help.