“Do you plan to send your spear hurtling into the side of the animals we seek?” Kaichen knew that Antuk avoided killing animals at all cost, but he had also watched as his friend enjoyed the meals prepared by the women of his village.
Antuk understood the need to hunt for food, but he preferred not to wield the killing blow. Others might scoff at Antuk’s reticence but Kaichen understood the origins of the man’s reluctance to kill a living thing. When they were young boys Antuk had flown into a killing rage over the abuse done to a small child. Kaichen was the only one that had been able to pull Antuk away from the father of the injured boy. Antuk had refrained from any type of violence since that day. From that time on their friendship had been solidified.
“If you fail to take down one of the bison, then I will have to try my best.” Antuk’s voice was full of mirth but Kaichen grunted in consideration. It was possible that his friend spoke in all earnestness. Perhaps he would once again learn to trust himself. Though Antuk had only been a boy at the time, he stood as tall as a grown man. In his anger, he had broken the man’s arm and would have injured him irreparably if not for Kaichen. As it was the man had lost the use of his arm and could no longer hunt. In the eyes of their band, the inability to hunt was crueler than death itself.
Kaichen sought to restore the food caches of their band. Antuk enjoyed the freedom of such a journey. They were in unexplored territory about a full day’s walk from the mesas inhabited by Antuk’s band.
Kaichen expected to find other people living upon the mesas and residing along the narrow river. He stumbled to a halt as his nostrils flared over the smell of blood. Antuk mimicked his stance perfectly.
“Blood.” Antuk’s voice was a low murmur of dread.
Kaichen used caution as he walked forward. He did not have to see the first burned dwelling to know that death had come to the small village that bordered the river. After motioning Antuk to stay behind he clenched his jaw and forced himself to walk through the abandoned village.
Signs upon the ground told him what had befallen this small village as his eyes caught sight of running footsteps and the sign of pursuit. The villagers had been taken unaware. Several of the men had tried to put up a fight, others had fallen by arrow or spear. Kaichen searched for survivors. It was all he could do to slow his breathing and move with purpose as he took in the sight of senseless death all around him.
Kaichen did not find any survivors. But he could see that the men that raided the village had taken captives with them. He was one man against many and there was little that he could do to help anyone. Even with the help of Antuk, he could not stand against so many men. The day was already fading to night. He resolved to return to Azin and share the fate of this village with him. Azin would take the matter into consideration and then he would make a decision that would not endanger the lives of the men, women and children of his village.
When the time came to choose a place to rest, Kaichen chose an area that was easily defensible. Antuk was restless and angry over the senseless killing of so many. Both men took comfort in the familiar night sounds and the small fire gave them a sense of wellbeing.
With the coming of the dawn, Kaichen opened his eyes and immediately took in his surroundings. All was not as it should be. He sensed the absence of Antuk. Kaichen moved swiftly so that he was on his feet, weapon in hand. Antuk had allowed the fire to die out. Kaichen had given Antuk the responsibility of keeping watch throughout the darkest part of the night.
In truth, he had remained watchful most of the night as he listened to the night sounds around them. Kaichen felt most comfortable when he was surrounded by the great expanse of land that made even a strong man feel insignificant.
Kaichen’s first thought was to find Antuk. He could not imagine how his friend had slipped away without waking him. Antuk was never silent. Kaichen’s lips turned up slightly at the corners.
It was as close to a smile as he could get. Kaichen did not smile and he did not laugh. Remaining emotionless had aided him in the past and it was one of the only reasons that he had survived until now.
His knife was in hand and his bow was slung across his back as if it were another appendage. A quiver of arrows hung over one shoulder and in his hand he used his hunting spear as a walking stick.
Kaichen’s intense gaze landed upon the imprint of Antuk’s footsteps. Kaichen spared a glance for his horse and the donkey. He had never named his horse and did not plan to do so. It was better not to get attached to things that would one day die.
He blended into the small copse of trees that encircled their shelter. He could not think of reason that his friend would leave without waking him.
A prickle of unease made Kaichen stand still as he looked around for any sign of movement. His eyes widened momentarily as he caught sight of Antuk sprawled upon the ground. His friend lay upon his belly and as Kaichen approached he saw no sign of blood or injury. Still, Antuk did not move.
Kaichen notched an arrow into place without a second thought and scanned the area for a threat. With each breath he moved steadily toward the unmoving form of his friend.
Kaichen fell to his knees without sound and placed his hand upon Antuk’s shoulder. Antuk flinched and would have shrieked if Kaichen’s hand did not snake out to cover his mouth.
“What are you doing?” Kaichen spoke in anger. He did not have patience for foolishness, Antuk was not injured and he was not lost.
Antuk did not immediately respond, in part because Kaichen’s hand still covered his mouth. Instead of moving, Kaichen followed Antuk’s wide gaze to look down over the land beneath them.
They were standing upon a bluff which overlooked several canyons and natural passageways. It was an awe-inspiring sight to behold as the morning light cast its rays upon the world, highlighting the land in sepia tones of amber, orange and yellow.
But it was not the light of the sun that captured Kaichen’s attention. Nor was it the shadows of the land that held his interest. Instead, he strained to believe what he saw before him as he slid to his belly beside Antuk.
Men walked upon the canyon floor with their spears held firmly, as if in expectation of an attack. Between three men, one lone figure in white stumbled forward. Kaichen knew that the slight figure was a woman by the delicate way that she placed her footsteps.
Her every movement was graceful and measured. He could see the flow of hair that hung to her waist even from this distance. He narrowed his eyes as the woman stood in place and looked directly toward them.
It was almost as if she could see them clearly. Kaichen knew that it was not possible. But for a moment he felt her gaze connect with his and pull her toward him.
Kaichen waited until the small group continued on. He winced when one of the men tripped the woman and stood over her as she sprawled helplessly upon the ground.
“Get up.” Kaichen found himself whispering the words to the woman who was obviously a captive. “Get up.”
Antuk looked at him strangely but Kaichen did not see. He willed strength into the woman who forced her limbs to heed her commands as she finally stood. Once more the group of men continued to walk forward with the woman between them.
Kaichen saw what others might not. The men cooled their parched throats with waterskins but they offered nothing to the woman.
Their weapons were well made and their clothing finely stitched. The men wore foot coverings that would protect their feet from the hot sand and dirt yet the woman walked barefoot, stumbling often.
“They seek her death.” Kaichen knew better than to interfere.
There was little that could be done for a woman surrounded by six armed men. He needed to return to Azin and then journey to the aid of his mother’s people.
There could be no delay and yet the woman’s terrible plight caused him to hesitate. He reminded himself that she had not asked for help nor had she even spoken. It seemed that she was resigned to her fate and though she had not given up, she did not expect anyone
else to intervene.
It was the woman’s quiet dignity that moved Kaichen to action. He immediately considered the weak points of his enemy. The men who brutalized one small woman had marked themselves his enemy from the moment that they had struck her. The woman was small of form and as thin as a willow.
He did not have to draw close to know that her body was a mass of bruises. Even as he watched one of the other men turned and stared at the woman as she was forced to walk past him.
The man grabbed a handful of the woman’s hair and tilted her head back so that she was forced to look at him. Kaichen could not hear what was said, but his jaw clenched as the man released the woman by thrusting her from him, causing her to fall to her hands and knees.
Kaichen held his breath, he was ready to act, but perhaps he was already too late. If the woman did not get up, it appeared that the man would slay her where she had fallen.
“Get up.” This time it was Antuk that whispered the word fervently, as if his words alone would will strength to the woman.
Kaichen could not speak, he readied his bow and arrow, checking to make certain that he had more than enough at his disposal. He could almost feel the woman’s struggle to stand, but she forced herself to her feet.
His own mouth was parched from the heat of the sun and he could well imagine how long she had been forced to walk without water. What other injuries did she have besides the bruises that mottled her arms and legs?
Kaichen whistled softly. The sound was almost inaudible, just as he intended. But it brought his horse to his side. He had slithered away from the ledge until he was certain that the men walking below would not see him outlined against the sky.
“What are you doing?” Antuk whispered his words even though there was no need to do so. They were too far away to be overheard.
Kaichen spared his friend a quick glance only to see that Antuk was armed with his bow and quiver of arrows, as well as a spear. The man’s large size could easily intimidate an enemy.
Antuk stood a full head and shoulders taller than Kaichen. He was made of lumbering muscle and bulk; it was this that often confused Antuk’s family.
The young man looked the part of a seasoned warrior but Antuk rarely hit his target when he cast his arrow to the wind. He had never brought his spear against an animal, though Kaichen sensed in Antuk a desire to preserve life in any form. Kaichen did not fault his friend for his ineptitude with weaponry, it only made him more protective of his friend.
Yet, in this instance he wished that Antuk was able to help. Kaichen grimaced as he considered what would happen to Antuk if they were unsuccessful.
“If I do not return, you must go back to your people.” Kaichen saw Antuk’s eyes dim as his friend considered his words.
A sand beetle crawled over Antuk’s foot and his friend studied it, momentarily distracted.
“Antuk.” Kaichen could not keep the irritation out of his voice. Antuk was easily distracted by even the smallest things, but he needed his full attention.
It could very well mean his friend’s life.
“I am listening.” Antuk’s face was red and his frown was in place.
Kaichen knew that this was his friend’s most serious expression. Ordinarily Antuk’s antics would amuse Kaichen, but he needed Antuk to listen carefully.
“You can follow our tracks back to the mesa with ease. If you need to leave without me, return to Azin and tell him what has occurred.” Kaichen held up his hand to forestall Antuk from speaking. “You will do as I have asked.”
Antuk simply nodded even as he returned to the place where they had both watched the scene below.
Kaichen smiled when Antuk removed his bow and set it in place. He knew that this was Antuk’s way of telling him that he would watch out for him.
Kaichen appreciated his friend’s show of loyalty, but he secretly hoped that Antuk would not make use of his weapon. If he did, he was as likely to hit Kaichen as he was to shoot their enemy.
Kaichen moved as one with his horse as he made his way carefully down to the canyon floor below. Only moments had passed from the time that he had last caught sight of the woman until now.
It was possible that he was already too late.
Amara took shallow breaths. The last blow to her midsection had injured something within her. She was concerned that it was not simply an injury to her ribs that affected her. It seemed that the men that kept her as a captive had finally succeeded in breaking her spirit.
Amara no longer held out any hope that she would ever be able to return to her village. She had run from the village, just as her mother told her to do, if the men should ever come. She had fled on feet that knew the course well.
Yet, at her mother’s scream Amara had stopped and looked back. She saw her mother sprawled upon the ground and a man stood over her looking down. Amara’s breath had hitched in her chest at the man smiled cruelly and glanced up to catch sight of her.
“Run!” Leija’s scream was cut short as she called to her daughter.
But her mother’s voice spurred her into action. Amara tore her gaze away and ran.
She would have made it into the sheltering canyons if not for the weapon that the warrior had thrown at her. Amara’s legs and feet were entrapped by the warrior’s disabling weapon.
It wrapped around her ankles before she could take another step. The most that she had been able to do was thrust her hands out and brace herself for the fall which knocked the breath from her lungs.
She screamed with all her might as the man advanced upon her. She did not scream because of the warrior who pulled her to her feet by sheer strength alone.
She did not scream at the agony she felt when he jerked her forward by her hair. She screamed because her mother, the only family that she had, no longer moved.
Leija lay silent and still upon the ground as the warrior dragged her daughter away.
Amara forced her thoughts back to the present as she stumbled. How many times has she stumbled and fallen? How many times had she landed upon the ground only to be forced back to her feet by the tip of a spear?
Amara had lost count of the many times that she had felt the prick of a spear at her back or upon her arms and shoulders. The men that marched her ever forward had no souls. They were soulless raiders that would kill anyone that stood in their way.
Amara did not understand why the men had not killed her. Last night she had been almost certain that she would be killed. Knowing that she would die had given her freedom.
She tried to escape, because to sit passively was to welcome death. If the men planned to kill her then she would hasten the act. There was no reason to wait.
Amara already felt dead now that everything had been stripped from her. She remembered her father’s strong arms, lifting her high. She remembered her mother’s laughter and the strength in her small hands as they worked side by side.
For a time she had not remained within herself. Her body continued to function, but her spirit drifted. She walked when prodded and rested when directed to do so. But she did not exist inside of the shell that was her body. Her spirit had flown away.
Brutal, intense pain brought Amara back to herself. She hated the man that had taken his spear and swung it against her side so hard that she heard the crack resonate within her body.
Tears flew from her eyes regardless of her vow not to cry. The pain called tears forth without regard for her wishes or desires.
Worst of all the man had laughed over her pain. His laughter caused icy tendrils of fear to sweep over her and Amara realized that this was what the man wanted. He wanted her to learn to fear him and perhaps she had.
Amara looked to the ridges of the canyon walls above her. She yearned for the high places where freedom rested. She could almost feel the burn of rock and sand as her hand met with stone so deeply did she yearn to climb far and fast, away from those that held her captive.
Freedom. Amara’s soul cried out for it. Peace. Amara yearned to know p
eace once more. The prod of a spear broke into her thoughts and Amara forced her legs to lock into place. She would not stumble or cry out in pain. She would not fall, not yet, not now.
When the man held her by her hair and again looked into her eyes, she knew what he saw. Her eyes were a curse to her, though others said that she was specially marked.
Amara would have given anything to be just like everyone else. But she knew that when the warrior looked at her this was the reason that her life had been spared when so many others of her village had died.
The warrior saw what she could not hide, unless she closed her eyes forever. Those of her family and of her village had dark eyes the color of the midnight sky. But Amara had eyes the color of the sunset and when her mood shifted her eyes lightened or darkened considerably. This was the reason that the man took care not to kill her with his massive strength. She was valuable.
Amara shuddered as she considered whose orders the warrior followed. Her entire body trembled as the man shoved her to the ground. She could not understand all of their words but their language was similar to hers. Yet she knew the words that had been whispered through the villages that wreathed the small river where they gathered water.
Raiders came on horseback to attack the villages that were unarmed and defenseless. They took captives, food, horses and anything of value. Her people had taken to sheltering within the caves that were nestled into the side of the plateaus that rose from the land.
Amara had hated to be concealed inside of the many caverns and caves that her people knew so well. Her mother needed her and so she often returned to Leija’s side. They would not eat if she did not work alongside her mother as they begged the earth to grow their crop. It was this that gave Amara the strength to rise to her feet once more despite the pain in her side.
The Last Sundancer Page 3
