by Davis Ashura
“The Humans live,” Soon said, answering the larger Tigon’s earlier question.
“Why?” the smaller one asked.
“He kill us, foolish kitten,” he said, using one of the Bael’s favorite insults of his kind. “Fireball us to roast meat.”
“Not afraid to die,” the leopard-spotted Tigon muttered.
“Mother needs us live,” Soon replied. “She need know about Humans in Privations.”
“Small one female?” the big Tigon asked.
Soon had wondered the same thing. The Human was smaller, but Humans never sent their females beyond the borders of their foul cities. He shook his head. “No. Must be little one.”
“Child?” the big Tigon asked, sounding uncertain.
“Small man,” Soon replied in an overly patient tone. He turned his back to them, trusting that neither of them were a threat to his command. They were too stupid to challenge him. Any Tigon in his claw, who might have tested his authority, had died moments ago by the Kumma’s hand. “We go,” Soon said.
*****
As the sun set along vast stretches of Continent Ember, the Prayer of Gratitude rose into the air as droning tendrils of sound. Like burning incense, it floated on the wind, carrying the voices of thousands of Chimeras from hundreds of locations. The words came to Lienna, soothing Her aggravated thoughts just as they reminded Her creations of where their ultimate loyalty stood. Her Chimeras would never betray Her. Of this, she was certain, just as She was certain they would never speak harshly to Her. Unlike Mother and Father — and of course, Mistress Arisa.
Lienna listened to the Prayer, calmed as She always was by the words of love:
By Her grace are we born
By Her love are we made
By Her desire are we shorn
By Her passion are we unmade
And are reborn once more
From the Privation Mountains, came a more urgent call. A Tigon ordinate begged for Her attention. In times past, She would have ignored such a supplication, trusting Her Baels to handle whatever was needed. No longer. All the Baels of the Eastern Plague were dead. She wondered what could have slain them.
“The Baels were your greatest creation,” Mother murmured in Her ears.
“They will betray you,” Father warned.
Lienna disregarded their voices. If She ignored them, then Mistress Arisa might also pass Her by. So She’d found in times past. She prayed it would be so, although She wondered to whom She prayed. Was She not a God in Her own right?
“You are a mewling coward,” a sibilant voice whispered in soft cruelty. “Do not dream Yourself divine. Your power stems from Me: Your true God. Never forget it.”
Lienna’s thoughts froze in fear. Mistress Arisa.
A harsh laughter clawed at Lienna’s mind. “And the Tigons do Your bidding? You are certain of it?” the terrifying voice questioned. “Idiot girl. They are just as the Baels. They will betray You, just as all who can reason will. It is why no such creature should walk My lands or swim My waters.”
“I will learn of what they need,” Lienna mumbled, daring to take action without first asking permission. Her boldness was surprising. Months ago, She would have never ventured to do such a thing. She would have never considered dreaming of doing such a thing. Thus far, however, Mistress hadn’t punished Her audaciousness.
This time She did.
Mistress Arisa’s fury was evident in the flashing lightnings and menacing thunder arising out of the clear, blue sky. Then came the cruel words, cutting into Lienna’s mind, lashings tearing Her sanity.
Lienna screamed, begging for peace and silence. Instinctually, She poured Her fear and pain down into Her Chimeras just as She’d done more and more often in the past few months. And as before on those other occasions, sanity came to Her. Arisa, Mother, and Father … they were all figments of Her imagination. Delusions from Her insanity. Memory also returned.
The Baels were dead and by Her hand. It was the price of their treason.
But all of it was fleeting. Even as She regained Her sanity and memories, She felt Her Chimeras tear into one another; killing and rending each other like crazed animals. She had to recall Her pain and anger — Her insanity — before the Chimeras destroyed themselves. With fretful regret, She took back Her madness, hating the dulling of Her mind; the lost recollections; and the irrational nature of Her thoughts. As the last of Her lunacy returned, She mentally shuddered, forgetting what it was to be sane or even that She was insane.
Once more, She was Mother Lienna, feared by all on Arisa, and in turn, fearing Her Mistress … who was thankfully absent.
Lienna imagined the Prayer of Gratitude, pretending it rose on the winds, coming to Her and soothing Her mind. Her Chimeras would always love Her, utterly and without question. She was their loving Mother.
From the Privation Mountains came the mewling supplication of a Tigon ordinate. He was young to have risen so far. He begged for Her attention, and Lienna considered allowing the Baels to deal with the Tigon, but just then, She remembered: the Baels of the Eastern Plague were no more, likely dead at the hands of the filthy Humans.
Lienna mentally sighed. She would have to go Herself and learn what the young ordinate needed.
She raced on the winds of a storm to the Tigon, who knelt with head pressed to the dirt amidst the torn ruins of two of his brethren.
Lienna briefly wondered what had happened here.
Sticky pools of blood, already freezing, littered the cold ground. One Tigon was nearly decapitated with great wounds all over his lion-like hide. The other one, spotted like a leopard, was laid open from navel-to-neck with his entrails spilling out like a bag of giant, gray maggots. The ordinate was also injured, deeply scored in many places, including his face where one ear was entirely torn off. Blood seeped from many injuries, and the Tigon struggled to breathe. Without help, he wouldn’t live another hour.
But help he would have. After all, Lienna was his Mother. How could She not save one of Her children?
She Healed the ordinate, even going so far as to restore his ear. “What is your name, child?” Lienna demanded.
The Tigon cowered before Her, his tail tucked between his legs, head pressed low. “Chak-Soon, Mother,” he whispered in a voice filled with awe and fear.
“Why did you call for Me?” She commanded.
“Two Humans,” the terrified Chak-Soon blubbered. “Two Kummas kill nest and claw.”
Lienna replayed Chak-Soon’s words in Her mind, wanting to ensure She hadn’t misheard the Tigon. She hadn’t. Lienna growled thunder, almost smiting the Tigon in Her annoyance. Why waste Her time with such a trivial piece of information? It should have been passed on to Chak-Soon’s commanders. After all, She had created the Chimeras for exactly this type of situation. They were meant to destroy Humanity whenever the parasites left their accursed cities during one of their so-called Trials. It left Lienna better able to plan the destruction of their homes. She almost shivered in anticipation of the destruction She would visit on proud Hammer.
Then She remembered where She was. This was the Privation Mountains, home to Craven, the despised and damned sister city to Ashoka.
For a brief instant, clarity overcame Her, and She wondered about Craven. In all Her long life, She’d never heard of such a place. The moment ended. The Baels had told Her of the place. Craven and Ashoka: cities that supported one another as grass holds the shape of a hill and prevents the fertile earth from being swept away by the raging spring flood.
“The Baels have betrayed You,” Father whispered.
“They were Your finest creation,” Mother added.
“You were wise to kill them,” Mistress Arisa advised. “You should have done it ages ago.” She laughed derision. “But then again, You were always a stupid child, even when You wore flesh.”
Lienna fell silent, wondering if She had really been the one who had killed the Baels.
Her thoughts were interrupted as the Tigon spoke once
more. His voice was guttural and almost unintelligible as he forced words past his oversized teeth. “You want us tell we see Humans here. Tell you self.”
The Tigon was right. She had given them just such an order. Chak-Soon’s words reminded Her of something else as well, something important, something She’d seen on the Hunters Flats: UnCasted Humans.
Her thoughts grew confused.
There were no such creatures. Humanity was a pestilential vermin, but even they would never stoop so low as to break the covenants established by Mother and Father in The Word and the Deed: To each Caste, a Talent and seek not that which is not yours.
“When have You ever truly understood anything of importance?” Mistress Arisa mocked.
Lienna cursed as the thought and memory left Her.
“Coarse language is for those who themselves are coarse. Such individuals lack grace,” Mother chided in a stern tone.
“Courtesy is what sets Us apart from the lower Castes,” Father added. “Why did You murder Us?” He then asked, fixated as always on His own pain.
Lienna ignored Her Parents. She recalled why She had set the remnants of the Eastern Plague to search out the Privation Mountains: to find Craven. The city was hidden. That much She knew to be true. And afterward, Ashoka would die. All of Humanity would. But first She would destroy cursed Craven. Perhaps the two Humans seen by her loyal ordinate, Chak-Soon, were returning there, to their foul home, and She might be able to follow.
“Attend My words,” She commanded the trembling Tigon. “Search out these mountains. Leave no stone unturned or cave unsearched. Find the hidden city of Craven. It is home to those two Humans who dared destroy My nest and My claw.”
The Tigon looked up in surprise before quickly bowing his head once more. “It will be honor obey commands,” he said. “But have no Chimeras to do will.”
“What happened to your fellows here?”
The Tigon shifted about, seeming nervous. His anxiety raised Lienna’s ire. Her children should never fear Her. Was She not a loving Mother?
“Lion and leopard go mad. They attack. Had kill them.”
Lienna considered Her child’s response and found it acceptable. “Then return to the Plague. You will have all you need when you arrive. I will see to it.”
“By Your command, Mother,” the Tigon said in a voice throbbing with love.
Her will spoken, Lienna took to the skies, climbing upward in a cyclone of wind.
When She ascended the highest heights, where the air was cold and winds perpetually howled, Mistress Arisa spoke once more. “It is as it should be,” She whispered. “They bend their heads to You, My emissary, but their brows are buried against My bosom, their true Mother.”
Lienna had no words to add to Mistress’ statement, and thankfully, Arisa remained quiet thereafter. The silence allowed Lienna time to consider Her options. For days, She hunkered in Her corner of the heavens, brooding over what to do next.
The Eastern Plague was disintegrating. The Tigons weren’t able commanders, not like Her Baels.
“The Baels have always been faithful,” Mother said, breaking the silence of Lienna’s mind.
“You must be cautious with them,” Father advised.
“Be silent!” Lienna snapped. “I need time to think.”
A derisive laugh came to Her. Arisa. “Simpleton. You? Think? A stone has a far keener mind than the one with which You were graced. Where is Your Knife?”
Lienna was shocked to immobility. She couldn’t remember. The Withering Knife. Where was it?
“Those entrusted with great power should themselves be trustworthy,” Father advised.
Lienna almost laughed with relief. Father’s words had allowed her to remember. The SuDin of Ashoka held the Knife. And he was loyal.
“Like the Baels?” Arisa snapped, Her voice a whiplash. “Idiot. You waste My time, utterly and eternally. Better for the world had Your stupidity been aborted while You lingered in Your Mother’s womb.”
Lienna whimpered in pain and heartache. Why did Mistress always speak so harshly to Her? Lienna poured Her grief down into the hearts of Her waiting Chimeras. The pain eased as sanity slowly came back to Her in fitful starts. She didn’t allow it to consume Her, though. She remembered what would happen if She did. The Chimeras would kill one another if Her full madness was given over to them. She had to be cautious.
The voices of Mother, Father, and Mistress Arisa faded, but much confusion remained. It would have to do. She couldn’t risk shedding more of Her madness into the Chimeras. For now, they were quiescent and unmoving.
*****
Days passed as Lienna pondered what next to do. Distantly, She noted Her Chimeras huddled next to one another, catatonic and unmoving. Carrion eaters: vultures, jackals, and even some wolves, had come forth to feast on their flesh. Lienna knew She had to resolve Her path quickly or risk severe injuries to Her children.
With a mental nod, She made Her decision.
She would allow the SuDin to keep the Knife. She smiled. It wouldn’t be enough for what he intended. It never had been. The SuDin, like all the others before him, had dreams of becoming like Lienna. He was a fool. They all were. To become as he desired, the SuDin would have to do something of which he was incapable: sacrifice.
Meanwhile, as he chased his empty hopes, the Knife and the murders would cut the heart out of Ashoka. The Withering Knife was a poison, and the more it was used, the more it would be primed and ready to leech a city’s Oasis and cause it to fail.
She smiled at the thought of Ashoka’s slow crippling, but Her smile grew grim as She recalled Craven. How to find it?
The Eastern Plague could search for it, but not with its current command. The Tigons didn’t know how to lead. They simply ordered those beneath them, handing out impossible instructions. Inevitably, those so tasked would fail and were often summarily executed for their supposed incompetence. It couldn’t go on, especially since the losses couldn’t be replaced, not with the destruction of the eastern breeding caverns.
As a result, the western breeding caverns had been ordered to increase their births and replenish the ongoing deaths, and Her western Baels had responded admirably. Of course, their failure would have meant their destruction, a fact Lienna suspected they knew all-too well. She would never again wholly trust the Baels, at least while lucid and probably even while gripped with madness, but She knew they would obey Her. Or they would be annihilated.
Regardless, three Plagues in total would Lienna have on Continent Ember by next fall.
Perhaps it was time to send the Baels from the Western Plague to take over the Eastern one? She mused. After a moment, She nodded to Herself. Yes. That would do.
She took back Her madness, freeing the Chimeras from their catatonia. They roared to life, slaying the vultures, jackals, wolves, and foxes feasting on their living flesh.
As the insanity took Her, Lienna remembered enough to sweep into the Privation Mountains to where the Tigons had seen two Humans. If She couldn’t find them, then a blizzard would. And after that, She would send Her loyal commanders from the West to the East.
Chapter 6: Find a Reason
I once believed that in order to have a joyful life, one need only follow the paths of righteous living. Such naive bromides have no place in this harsh, unforgiving world.
-A Wandering Notion by Shone Brick, AF 1784
“What were you trying to do,” Jessira asked.
Rukh looked her way for a moment before turning away. He wore an expression of guilt but remained quiet.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“No.” His answer was curt, meant to cut off any further conversation on the topic.
But Jessira wasn’t ready to let it go. Rukh’s depression was dangerous, both to him and her. They needed to discuss this.
After the brief battle, they’d mounted up and pushed on, continuing well into the night. Jessira had let Rukh take the lead. She got the sense that he didn’t want to
stop. It seemed like he needed to distance himself — literally and figuratively — from the site of the battle. Eventually, with the horses’ heads drooping low in exhaustion, he’d called a halt.
They made camp in a shallow cave formed by an overhanging ledge of green-veined sandstone. A small fire burned as a bright beacon of warmth in the cold and cheerless winter’s night. Otherwise, their shelter provided little protection from the bitter wind blowing across the high plains. The night sky was filled with twinkling stars while a thin crescent moon hung low, offering a chill, ivory light.
“I know what you’re feeling,” Jessira said.
Rukh glanced at her, curiosity flickering in his eyes, although he remained silent.
Jessira took a deep, steadying breath. She was about to relate something from her past; something deeply personal and painful; something she’d never told anyone else, not even Lure or any of her closest friends and family. The only reason she was willing to tell Rukh was because of today’s events. He needed to hear this. Until the battle, he probably had never realized the depths of his despair. But maybe after hearing Jessira’s story, he would have the courage to confide in her — or someone, anyway. And maybe after hearing Jessira’s story, he would understand that his life could still be fulfilling.
“You don’t have to tell me,” he said. “Whatever it is, I know it’s probably something you’d rather forget.”
Jessira would have gladly accepted his offer, but she felt like she had to speak her story; if not for Rukh, then maybe for herself. It was time to get her secret out in the open. No more shame for something in which she was blameless.
“In my last year of training for the Home Army, we spent most of our time out in the Wildness. We were hardly ever home to see family and friends, and afterward, when we graduated from our time as nuggets — what we call warriors in training — we matriculated into the ranks of the High Army.” She shifted uncomfortably. This next part wasn’t easy to say. The shame of what had happened had faded with time but had never entirely disappeared.
