by Reece Dinn
'Awon don't,' cried Norox.
Awon screamed, expelling the air from his lungs, and charged Shiny Teeth. He leapt at him, raising Tenemu over his head and bringing it down on the guy.
Shiny Teeth dodged to the side with surprising speed, and the axe-head bounced off the ground and back up into Awon's face the flat side smacking him in the nose. A large gauntleted fist crunched into the side of his face before he could turn around, and he was sent sprawling across the ground, pain pulsing where he'd been hit. It took a second or two before he came back to his senses. He pushed himself back up and screamed, hefting Tenemu over his head again. His eyes watered from the pain in his face, but he fought through it.
Shiny Teeth waited for his attack, his pretty boy face expressionless.
Awon came at him again, swinging Tenemu at his chest. Shiny Teeth lashed out with his sabre and before Awon could bury the axe into his chest Tenemu's axe-head came flying off. Awon clutched what remained of his weapon, staring dumbfounded at the place where the axe-head should have been.
Shiny Teeth levelled his sword point at Awon's throat, the blade's tip touching skin.
Awon screamed and drew his cleaver. He beat away the sabre and swung at Shiny Teeth's neck. Shiny Teeth caught him by the arm before the cleaver could stab him, fingers digging in. Awon grunted, then the cleaver fell from his limp hand. He threw the axe shaft at the guy's head, but Shiny Teeth moved and it flew past him.
Pain burned in Awon's hand as Shiny Teeth squeezed harder, making him cry out and fall to his knees. Shiny Teeth raised the butt of his sabre and brought it down hard on his face, once, then again, the pain excruciating. Awon fell back, choking on the blood that filled his mouth.
'Put them all in shackles and take them to their cells immediately,' Shiny Teeth ordered someone. 'We're going to search their little hideouts for any more criminals. Then I shall deal with you Konar. Anyone found guilty of anything other than following orders will be joining our new recruits.'
'Fuck you,' Awon snarled, more blood dribbling into his mouth. He spat some onto Shiny Teeth's shiny boots.
Shiny Teeth frowned. 'Your friend is right. You are a stupid little shit, aren't you?' He raised his blood speckled boot and held it over Awon's head.
'Fuck you,' Awon hissed.
The boot came down hard on his head.
Chapter Fifty
Koma leaned her head against the padded carriage interior, praying that somehow her head would slip through and she'd fall out onto the road.
'Donden wandered far and wide in his quest for the missing pieces of his heart,' the little grebbin opposite her squeaked.
The Monster sat cross legged beside Koma on the purple cushioned bench listening to the grebbin's story for the third time in two days. I should've kicked it out of the carriage before we left the city.
Barren, the Koku-bier, sat on the seat next to the grebbin, his arms folded over his dark green robe, evidently disliking hearing the Quest to Mend Donden's Broken Heart again as well.
'One day,' the grebbin continued, 'Donden came upon a small farmstead that lay by a river where a family of four lived; a husband, wife, and two daughters.'
Not the part about how he finds love with one of the farmer's daughters? Gods, it's disgusting. He sleeps with both daughters, and then the farmer finds out and seems okay with it. He then chooses one daughter over the other and the rejected one kills herself. Koma parted the curtain, opened the carriage window, and poked her head outside, putting as much distance between herself and the grebbin as she possibly could.
Two Saban's Guard rode quietly on burmaback beside the carriage, with four Koku-swords walking amongst them on the dry mud road. She'd never heard of Koku-swords until Barren had said that they'd be joining them on their journey for extra protection. These Koku dressed in black robes, and true to their name, carried a sword by their side. Rapiers, if Koma was an accurate judge. Apparently these Koku-swords duelled all the time for practice and their sword skills were a match for anyone. Would love to see how they try and move fast in those robes. Can't imagine how much use they'll be if we're attacked by rifle wielding bandits. I'll be placing my trust in the Saban's Guard to protect us. The two Guards however were pumping sweat from having to wear their heavy armour all day long, whereas the Koku looked perfectly comfortable. I could be wrong.
The Monster had somehow managed to convince the Socrae of the Guard to allow two of his men to accompany them on their journey, without him double checking with Lerama first. Clearly these idiots trust the Monster's word too much. Although I suppose that one day soon she is to be the Saban of their country. They have to begin trusting her word at some point.
Barren had not questioned Koma either when she'd ventured down to the temple in the dead of night with one the Guards in tow, to tell him that they were leaving the next day. The temple had been creepy late at night, the tall, oddly shaped building like a massive shadow monster. The fear of losing face with the Guard had been the only thing that had stopped her from running away. That and the embarrassment of running away from an imaginary monster. These savages really are affecting my mind.
The landscape of Predemagada was one of vast fields of lush green grass, and colourful flowers of reds, yellows, whites, blues, pinks, and purples. The majority of it was farmland, the savage farmers grew a wide variety of crops. One of the most common was sifewis, a large plant that on its stems grew a sticky, fluffy substance called wiswis, which the savages used instead of flour to make bread, cakes and other such things. Another common crop was imona, a bright colourful plant with a big, wide, ballooning purple flower that grew when the wind got under its petals. The savages liked to grind up the stems and use them as herbs to flavour their food to give it a fragrant taste.
The farmland was usually filled with grazing trobaam and burma. Dogmas were a much more common sight outside of the cities too, no doubt due to the lack of creepy karrons hunting them, the creatures only seeming to populate the rooftops of the savages' cities. There were also significantly more ickbits flying around, due to the wider array of flowers. The small, glowing insects flew from flower to flower like they were at a feast.
One thing that had startled her when she'd first seen it, and made the Guards laugh, was an iplel as it had flown near the carriage. Iplels were large, flying insects with long, wide white wings nearly as big as a person's face and decorated with strange black patterns. Their bodies were long, thin, and black, with tails covered in tiny white plumes. Their heads were small with big white eyes and a long needle protruding from where its mouth would be. The iplels fluttered more than flew, and moved slowly, a disturbing sight. They didn't bite, the Guards said, even if you were slow enough to be caught by one, but they still made Koma's skin crawl. Just the thought of one touching her made her shiver. One creature I haven't seen yet are those mastapanes I've heard about that hunt the burma and trobaam out on the plains. I know they're mainly found on the other side of the Olsap plateau, in Benigrada, but I'd have assumed they were a common sight. Thankfully that isn't the case.
Sweet smells swept up her nose and she breathed in deeply, relaxing. The sun was shining brightly, the sky nearly clear of cloud, bathing the land in a pleasant warmth. This land is quite beautiful, once you take the savages out of it. I'd be tempted to stay here when the Ragi have reclaimed the land. When the fires have died down, and the flowers and grass have regrown, yes, this would be a beautiful place to live.
The carriage rolled over a rock and she bounced off her seat and hit her head on the top of the window. 'Ow,' she cried, the momentary calm she'd been feeling vanishing in an instant.
They'd left at first light two days before and the journey so far had been a rocky, shaky one. I hope it's not much further. The Monster said just over a moon, but we seem to be making good progress so we might get there earlier.
'Doden's heart was healing slowly, piece by piece, but he found that he wasn't returning back to the way he was before. He'd changed, and
he realised that even if he healed his heart fully, he would never be the same person.'
'Sabu?' asked Barren. 'Perhaps we could let the grebbin rest for a while, and continue your Shadar learning instead?'
'Later,' said the Monster, not looking up at him.
One of us should kill her. You got what it takes, Koku?
The little grebbin continued squeaking its story.
Two Konar-jours on burmaback approached from down the road. Konar-jours were Konar who patrolled the roads of Predemagda's countryside and rural areas, fighting and capturing the occasional highway robber or lending aid in whatever way they could. They were few in number considering how vast an area they had to oversee, and they were stretched very thinly across the land. Two Konar could cover up to thirty dons just on their own. The farmers had to learn to defend themselves for the most part.
'Hello there,' one of the Konar shouted in greeting.
Koma leaned out of the window to try and see them better.
The carriage driver shouted, pulled on the reins, and the trobaams ground to a halt, jerking the carriage as they did. Koma grabbed the sides of the window to stop herself from banging her head again.
'Hello, Konar,' the Guard at the front replied, spurring his burma forward to meet the two Konar.
These Konar-jours didn't wear armour like their city dwelling counterparts, instead they wore loose green tunics with dark brown trousers and light brown boots. These two don't look like they're expecting trouble any time soon. Both men did have rifles slung over their shoulders at least, and wore short swords at their sides.
'By your armour I'd say you were Saban's Guards,' the Konar called.
'You'd be correct,' the Guard replied, then his voice drifted out of earshot.
'What's happening?' the Monster whispered in her ear.
'Some Konar,' said Koma, edging away from the Monster's disgusting head.
'Oh. Why are they stopping us? Do they not know who I am? I should go out there.'
'There's no need, Sabu. They're just talking. We'll be moving in a second.'
Barren snored as he slept beside the grebbin, who too was asleep next to him, its one eye closed as it slept on its rear, legs splayed out in front of it.
Five or ten minutes later the Guard came trotting back over with the two Konar.
'Greetings, Sabu. It's an honour to meet you,' said the Konar who'd done the talking, a dirty faced, but pleasant enough looking man with a small nose but big eyes.
'Yes it is. Can we be on our way now?' said the Monster, pulling away from the window.
The other Konar, a fat headed man with scruffy dark hair, frowned after her, but the Guard shook his head and waved away the Monster's insult to them.
The dirty faced Konar's eyes fell on Koma. 'Whose this beauty then?'
'None of your business,' said Koma. She closed the window and pulled the curtain closed.
When, eventually, the carriage began moving again, there was a knock on the window on Koma's side.
It was the Guard.
'What?' snapped Koma, as the carriage shook, again.
'I just wanted to inform the Sabu that there is a village not much further on that the Konar advised we should spend the night at. The next place after there where we could rest would be Katimas, but it'd be the Twenty Fourth hour at least by the time we reached there.'
'Very well,' the Monster shouted to him. 'We'll rest in this village.'
A village? Better than the farmsteads we've been forced to rest in the past two nights. I almost felt sorry for the families whose homes we commandeered. But better them than us to have to sleep in this carriage.
'As you wish, Sabu,' said the Guard. He moved away and Koma closed the curtain again.
'So you see,' said Barren, an eager look on his face now that he was finally allowed to teach the Monster, 'both we and the Benigradans laid claim to the Olsap plateau. Neither side would give it up to the other, and that is why we fought a war with them for all those years.'
'Until my father made peace with them, and they agreed to share it?' said the Monster, with a smug look on her face.
'Yes, Sabu.'
'But why would they not just share it to begin with?'
'That is a tough question. We and the Benigradans were enemies, neither side wanting to associate with the other, which was the main cause of the conflict. Dorai, who the Benigradans believe to be the god of the dead, was a big problem too. They believe it is he who governs when a person returns to the world, and what they reincarnate as. The Benigradans used the Olsap plateau as evidence that their god exists, and decreed that the plateau was Dorai's, and that if we were not going to respect him, then we shouldn't be permitted to set foot on it. Whether that is true or not, is of course, irrelevant. The fact of the matter is that deceased who have returned to the world, but have not yet reincarnated, do appear there to their loved ones, Whether this Dorai has anything to do with that is up for debate.'
'I see,' said the Monster, disinterestedly.
I doubt she does. He'll probably have to explain it to her again tomorrow. 'Sabu. We're near the village,' said Koma. The sun was setting, tainting the sky with beautiful orange light.
'Oh good,' said the Monster. 'My rear is extremely numb from sitting down all day. And I'm hungry. The wine and cheese we had before wasn't enough to sate me.'
'Should you be drinking wine, Sabu?' asked Barren.
'I'll do as I like,' she snapped back.
He placed both of his index fingers on his chin. 'Of course, Sabu.'
'So where does this Dorai come from? Why don't we believe in him?'
It's actually a good question. In this ridiculous Shadar religion it would make sense if there was a god of the afterlife. There's different gods controlling the elements that create and maintain life, why would there not be one controlling the dead?
'Many have theorised that this Dorai first appeared to the Benigradans, or Southern Predemagda as it was known before the Civil War, in the form of Doramany from the Savage Lands far to the south of Benigrada.'
The Monster leaned forward with sudden interest. 'Doramany?'
'A death god that many of the tribal peoples believe in. They say he decides when a person dies, and when, and how, he returns to life. When the Beingradans encountered, and began trading with the tribes, they heard of this Doramany and, over time, came to incorporate him into Shadar. The miraculous powers of Olsap most likely fuelled their acceptance of this Doramany, which would soon change to Dorai.'
'But why did we not accept him?'
'Because he is not a part of the ancient Shadar teachings. Shadar himself stated that the gods control the living world, what goes on after a person has passed is beyond their power. It is the realm of the world's will then.'
The Monster grinned like a simpleton. 'Oh, of course. The prophet Shadar, That makes sense. So the Benigradans have turned their back on Shadar's teachings then?'
Barren shook his head. 'Not exactly. It is worse. They say that Shadar's teachings were incomplete, and that they have found the missing piece of the puzzle.'
'Fools.'
'I agree, Sabu.'
Fools? You're all simpletons trying to make sense of the world. How wrong you have it. It is the Ragi who control what happens to you when you die. Maybe these gods of yours are remnants of the Old Gods, but it won't matter. Soon enough they'll be eradicated from both this world, and the Heavens themselves.
'Greetings,' someone shouted from outside.
'Evenin',' one of the Guards from the Monster's side of the carriage shouted back. The girl Guard, judging by the voice. 'We've come ter spend the night in yer village. There're nine of us out 'ere, plus three more inside the carriage. One of 'em is the Sabu of Predemagda. I suggest yer make yer best home ready fer us.' What an awful accent. How did she become a Guard?
'The Sabu? Here? Yes. Yes. Of course.'
Koma drew the curtain of her window and opened it. It was dark outside, the last of the sun
just falling over the horizon, Lorelai hanging right over the edge of it as well. It would fall tonight and Renoma would rise in the east. She poked her head out the window for a better look. The village was nothing more than two rows of wooden houses lining the road up ahead. A small cloud of dust rose from beneath the heels of the villager running back to inform his neighbours of their arrival.
It reminds me a little of home, if you trade the road for the Hentomosha River. In some respects I didn't live a great deal better than these savages do. Thank the gods my mother and sisters have a better life now.
The village was surrounded by farmland, lots of fields of sifewis. The area was populated with dregi trees too.
The moonlight bounced off the shaven heads of the Koku-swords, who walked silently beside the carriage. I'd bet they can't wait to be off their feet. They must be jealous of Barren, who gets to ride inside all day. Shouldn't be too jealous though, they don't have to listen to the Monster's grebbin babble on.
By the time they were in the village itself three villagers had arrived to greet them. One of them, an older man with short greying hair and a beard, looked to be the village elder. The blue and brown rags he wore looked newer and better maintained than those of his companions, and the cane he carried looked polished and not cheap.
'Greetings, Sabu,' the elder said, his voice old and withered. 'Welcome to our village.'
'Did someone say my name?' the Monster asked Koma.
'The village elder outside.'
'Oh. Should I speak to him?'
Koma shrugged. 'I guess.'
The Monster opened her window and hung her head out. 'Greetings, elder. Thank you for your hospitality.'
How does she just switch to being polite like that? Why can't she be this way all the time?
'It is our pleasure,' said the elder. 'You will be staying in my home this evening. I hope it is to your liking. It is a simple farmer's home, but it is warm and dry.'
