It was for this reason the Sotar patrolled their border adjoining the land of the Kuthari. In fact, there were always patrols out in force, and because the enmity between the two peoples had existed for hundreds of years if not longer, the patrols had evolved into a rite of adulthood. It provided an excellent way to blood their new warriors while keeping the borders secure and nearby villages safe from harm.
Also unique was the fighting style of the Sotar warrior. As men of other countries used swords, bows, and like, the Kuthari used clubs as their primary weapon, the Sotar used their hands, feet, and knives. The waiting warriors drew knives, and Ulf raised himself a little higher from behind the scrub, finally catching a glimpse of knobby heads as the Kuthari started up the hill.
Mimicking the chirp of the desert ground sparrow, Ulf let his men and women know that the arrival of the Kuthari was imminent. It was only a few minutes later that the Kuthari were within the circle of warriors. Their tread heavy and slow for the creatures did not move fast. They carried large clubs they used as their main weapon of choice and were oblivious of the men and women they were passing. With the croak of a rock toad, Ulf signaled the attack.
Instantly, the warriors rose as one body, and with shrill screams, launched themselves at their foe. Ulf rose also but stayed back. This was not his test, but that of the men and women he had trained. Only if all the warriors perished would Ulf take a hand, finishing off any remaining Kuthari.
Lightning fast kicks, a blizzard of punches, and the flash of steel knives marked the scene as the fighting resolved into thirty individual fights of Sotar against Kuthari. Ulf nodded in approval as within moments, four of the enemy were slain, the bodies left bleeding in the grassy soil with slit throats. As each fight ended, the victorious warrior would stand over his kill and taunt the remaining foe with more shrill cries denoting their prowess. Then Ulf watched dispassionately as two warriors quickly fell with split open skulls.
The winning men and women stood motionless, unable to assist their brethren unless a victorious Kuthari advance on an individual fight, only then would they jump into the fray because honor was everything and individual battle was paramount to their people. Another half minute passed with another dead warrior, but during that time, saw a dozen of the invaders dispatched. The remaining Kuthari were all bleeding as were a few of the Sotar warriors, but the outcome of the fight was clear, and it was soon over with all the Kuthari dead, for the Kuthari never surrendered.
Not bad, thought Ulf as his remaining, but now blooded, squad screamed in triumph, raising their bloody weapons and fists high in the air. These men and women now numbering twenty-five would all receive another tattoo upon their faces denoting they were now adults. Already adorning the upper cheek of each was the crescent moon signifying the Sotar and the new one would be the symbol of Shianna which was a wavy bladed dagger pointed downward just like the two daggers each warrior carried. There was symbolism behind the use of that particular dagger. More than a hundred generations ago, the Sotar used to practice human sacrifice until the Goddess Shianna herself informed the shamans collectively that the act displeased her and discontinued that custom.
"Alright warriors, you know what to do next," Ulf shouted, walking towards the gathered men and women who still shrieked war calls to the heavens. Immediately, they stepped off the bodies of the Kuthari and began hacking the large heads from the bodies. The heads were to be tossed back across the border while the bodies left rotting where they had fallen. Ulf knew that vultures would most likely strip the bodies clean before rot had a chance to set in.
Each warrior carrying a head or two, they took off at a distance-eating run towards the border, less than five miles away. Ulf examined the sun, critical of its position, and figured they would reach their destination by noon. He ran with the others but brought up the rear of the formation. The Sotar not only did not use bows, with the exception of hunting, but they also never rode horses. In fact, the pace they set could be kept up all day and through the night if need be. For extended trips, they did permit themselves the use of pack mules to carry large quantities of supplies, and on a trip in the Great Desert, plenty of water.
He was right. It was indeed noon when they reached the border, and with mighty heaves, the heads were tossed far enough: there was no doubt they had landed in the Kuthari domain. Ulf did not know, nor care, whether hungry animals stripped the heads or a passing patrol recovered them. The deed completed, the squad headed back to the village to receive tattoos while bragging about their prowess in battle.
As they ran, they sang the song of conquest and survival and were still singing it twenty miles later, when they finally reached Sarth, their village, just as the sun was setting. Ulf knew that a special occasion had the bonfires roaring high and soon he would find out. Quickly, he called his squad together and saluted each before dismissing them to spread their tales of heroism to family, friends, and community members before heading towards the village square.
As Ulf suspected, the size of the central bonfire indicated guests of some sort, and as he drew closer, he saw it was the Nastar himself. Walking up to the Naster, Ulf stopped and quickly placed his right hand over his heart while tilting his head in a bow of respect, the Sotar salute to a superior. The other returned the salute without the slight bow. Then both men dropped their hands at the same time as Quinn the Nastar clasped Ulf by the shoulder in his large hand and drew him closer to the warmth of the fire.
The Nastar, leader and head Shaman of all the peoples of the Sotar, was also the primary individual who spoke with their goddess. Though a Shaman, the Nas Ulf had prayed to the goddess countless times to ask for guidance, a blessing, or to help heal the sick or injured. Never communicating with words, she would often send him solutions or approval, even agreement followed by a warm glow within him. The Nastar, on the other hand, could actually talk to the goddess through words and miracles, though miracles were rare. Ulf himself had witnessed only one in his forty-eight years of life.
"It is good to see you again, my friend," said Quinn, as he directed Ulf to sit beside him on a log near the blazing fire.
"As it is to see you," replied Ulf, sitting and warming his hands to the cheerful blaze before them. "It must be something important to have you visit this late in the day."
"It is. Let me fill you in. We can catch up on village matters later. There walks amongst us a new champion, but he is not of the Sotar, instead of Korath and brought in by the God Ares." Ulf raised his eyes at this, knowing it had been at least a few hundred years since the last champion walked among the men and women of Corvalis. The sign of a champion always heralded death and destruction on a vast scale, and Ulf shuddered internally, wondering how many of the Sotar would survive what was to come.
"That is not good news, Nastar," muttered Ulf as he picked up a stick to stir the fire, deep in thought. He then said, "I assume our goddess told this to you directly." He said it as a statement, not a question, wondering if one would come anyways.
"That she did, Ulf, and you are correct that this event spells ill tidings for all the peoples of this world. The goddess provided me with details that I need to share with you, so that you may better perform your mission. First, it is a man from another world entirely, thrust into the body of a soldier of Korath when an Illian wizard stripped that person's soul away during a border skirmish. Ares, having seen that moment, had been waiting to slip in the soul of this new champion."
"But, I don't understand why a Sotar was not chosen. Man to man, woman to woman, we are by far the superior warriors," sputtered Ulf, looking up to see his superior's eyes meeting his, somewhat in disapproval. "I am sorry, Nastar. I let my feelings for our people get the best of me. I'm sure Ares had a reason for being the god to bring in a champion instead of our own Shianna."
"Nothing to forgive, Ulf. It's a natural reaction, and you are not the only Nas to question the Goddess Shianna's motives. I am sure every race and people of this great world feels the same as you. H
owever, that is something the gods decide, not mere men. Also, there is more to a champion than being a great warrior." Ulf nodded at these words, though still embarrassed by his outburst.
"Nastar, can you tell me more about this champion, and perhaps why this particular man from another world was chosen?"
"Indeed, I will. It's very important you have this information. You will shortly be seeing him, but I'll get to your mission in a moment. First, as you know, this world has a great many people that worship quite a few gods. These gods divide themselves into two basic groups: those of Order and those of Chaos." Ulf nodded. He also knew there were elder gods and lesser gods within each side. Their Goddess Shianna was a lesser god, under the umbrella of Hera, who was an elder god. It stood to reason, Hera, the Queen of gods, would make the decision of where and who brought in a champion. Quinn continued, recognizing Ulf's acceptance and understanding.
"As you also know, the gods we worship here have many aspects that also rule on other worlds, such as ours and some far stranger. Here, our goddess is Shianna, but on another world, she might be called something else. Now, as an elder god, Hera represents races on countless worlds and has a much larger pool of resources to draw from. The Goddess Shianna told me our world was in need of a master strategist and tactician because we will be greatly outnumbered. The Goddess Shianna indicates that though we have many that are good at leading large groups of people, a true master is needed for what is to come. The Goddess Hera found one. It's really that simple, Ulf."
"Okay, I can see that. So, who is this new champion, and what is my purpose in this?"
"The body's previous occupant was known as Onias, acaptain in the King of Korath's guard. He grew up adopted by an older guard sergeant who taught him everything he knewbut is now deceased. John Stone is the name of the new individual whose soul now resides within the body of Onias. I do not know where he came from .All I know is that it is not Corvalis."
"And what is my mission?"
"You are to take Sarth's entire force of warriors. Proceed north across the great desert to Korath City, where you will place everyone under the command of this champion."
"But…" Ulf started to say, but Quinn held up one hand to forestall him and continued:
"One third of the warriors from both Grimmer and Erdon are already on their way to protect the villagers here, until the civilians can be moved to Butte, where the defenses are much stronger, are being expanded even as you and I speak. Your people will remain safe from any marauding Kuthari that might venture this far south and west. It will also be your job to access the threat this world might be facing and send word back to me in Butte. I will need an estimate of how many additional warriors we may need to send. Until I find out what is needed, I will be preparing additional groups of warriors, stockpiling food supplies, and relocating the people of less defendable villages."
"But I am the Nas of Sarth. These are my people; do you know what you ask of me? Why not simply put a force together from several villages and send that under a leader?"
"Because the Goddess Shianna specifically told me to send you and your twenty-five hundred warriors, who are arguably the best trained in all Sotar."
"The Goddess herself did?" asked Ulf in amazement.
[Yes, I did, Ulf, and I will be riding with you to war,] Shianna responded directly into Ulf's thoughts, causing his eyes to bulge. He threw himself on his knees. Beside him. Quinn did the same. It was unheard of for the goddess to communicate directly with a simple Nas. To his knowledge, and the history of their people, the goddess only did this once before, and that was when the goddess put an end to human sacrifice.
I am yours to command, my Goddess. I will begin preparations to depart by morning.
[Hurry, my son. I fear speed is of the essence, and time a luxury we do not have. There is a dark force rising far to the north beyond the desolation, and it is coming our way. I fear this may be worse than the Chaos wars five hundred years ago. Now go, and prepare, knowing that I will always be there beside you.]
I hear and obey! Instantly, Ulf was on his feet striding away and shouting to those around him for all warrior squad leaders to assemble at the main hall. It would be a long night of packing and preparation, and if he expected to leave by morning, he needed to get started now. Gone was the fatigue of running all day. Instead, a feeling of joy and honor suffused his body by the goddess's presence.
~The Dark Excellency~
General Moff stared out the window of the upper battlement room. Finished with charting his progress, he knew delaying much longer to report to the Dark Excellency might earn him the same punishment as General Graff. Moff held off for a moment though, for things had not gone as well as planned. Well, some things had gone well, but not all. His death squads had been successful in eliminating the chiefs in an even dozen villages, which had earned results. The word of the Dark Excellency's retribution had spread, and within days saw an increase in drum messages of compliance. Week by week, he got three times the results of his predecessor. That was the good news.
The human encampments had still not fully complied, and though he had sent out death squads to some of those, most had not been successful. In fact, four of the six squads he had sent out did not report, and Moff knew they were dead. This was not because the humans were better fighters than his own people, but that they were more suspicious.
With his own people, the Jugazi, the arrival of a troop of dignitaries from the Dark Excellency met with joy and celebration. No one had suspected anything until it was over, and then his people were too cowed to do anything other than obey. The humans had seen the delegations and immediately assumed the worst, preparing for it. In most cases, the humans identified his death squads. Even those squads not identified still suffered casualties when they struck.
He knew the next step was to send an overwhelming force against each tribe. The tribes would have two choices, to join or to die. He was okay with either solution, though he knew the Dark Excellency needed higher numbers before advancing against the southern armies. There were simply not enough Jugazi to succeed without additional warriors. He only hoped enough humans survived to contribute.
The Thana were a different matter. Arriving at the entrance to the domain of the Thana, his ambassadors had received a cold welcome. Clearly, the earth dwellers heard the war drums beating in the night and knew what it meant. They wanted nothing to do with the Jugazi or their war. When his death squad made the next push for their compliance, it experienced even worse results. The Thana simply collapsed the mountain passes that were the only good way into their country. They then picked off his men with long-range crossbows and left the bodies to rot. When Moff had their absence investigated, they found the dead along with a note attached to a crossbow bolt that stuck out of one of the bodies. The note was simple and informed the Jugazi to leave the Thana alone in their neutrality.
General Moff knew that was a tough one to beat. He'd been informed the landslide at the pass was hundreds of feet in height. There was no effective way to scale that. As volcanoes ringed their country, there were few other ways to get in. Well, there was another way, but that would be suicidal. They could conceivably enter Lorrwood then circle around to hit the Thana from the south. But Moff knew any Jugazi that entered Lorrwood would never be seen again. The only good thing about the Lorr was they also considered themselves neutral. They had proven in the past to aid no one.
Finally, there were the Wolven. That one had proven as hard as the Thana in many respects. The Wolven had no passes to close. Instead, they had thick forests and rugged mountains to hide. Moff sent over a dozen squads into the wilds to track down the pack leaders, but to no avail. No camps were found and only occasional glimpses of a wolf here and there, quickly disappearing. If Moff had hair, he would have pulled it out by now over that situation. It was impossible for a Jugazi to sneak through woods and scale mountains quietly, not to mention the Wolven were many times faster than his own people.
Moff
sighed, straightened, turned around, and headed from his quarters. It was time to see the Dark Excellency, and maybe he would survive the encounter. As he trudged to the top of the tower, he could only be glad his mate had passed away several years ago. It was common for the Dark Excellency to use a warrior’s mate when punishing a subordinate, and the greater the infraction, the more severe the punishment to the mate. Years ago, he witnessed a junior officer's mate raped by over fifty Jugazi before being slowly stripped of her skin. In the end, they had drawn and quartered her. The ordeal had lasted almost a full day, and by the end, the officer had gone mad. It did not pay to cross the Dark Excellency.
Allowed entry to their Supreme Leader, he carefully explained his progress, being quick to point out how much better he was doing than Graff. He had brought copies of his charts and reports, but the Dark Excellency had no need of them. Then he affirmed the Dark Excellency's decision to leave the Bree, or red stone eaters as they were commonly called, alone. At that point, he paused, unsure how to broach the subject of the Thana and the Wolven. His delay must have taken too long for the Dark Excellency started speaking.
"Tell me about the Thana and the Wolven." The delivery was cold and very deep like the pit of death, and Moff struggled to swallow before speaking.
"The Thana collapsed the main passes into their kingdom, even as our messengers approached, then killed them with their long-range crossbows and left this note claiming their neutrality. The pass is completely blocked, too high to scale." Carefully, Moff pulled the bloody parchment from his pouch and tried to hand it to the Dark Excellency, but the Supreme Leader ignored the proffered item and turned away from the general to stare out his window.
The God Warriors Page 9
