The Last Sundancer

by Quinney, Karah

  Farren’s eyes were wide but his mouth was set in a grim line of determination. He fought beside Tamol and though he was not a warrior, long-held loyalty and a sense of brotherhood gave his blows force. Those that were injured made their way to the captives, using the blades of their knives to cut and hack at the ropes that held the men and women.

  Despite the battle being waged, the women immediately gathered their children to them and hurried away from the fighting men.

  The freed captives began to take up the fight alongside Tamol and Farren’s men. They fought alongside Kaichen and each man that stood with him. They fought as one, seeking freedom from the raiders that had overtaken them.

  As Kaichen fought, he looked for the men that led the raiders. As the number of raiders left standing dwindled, the men around him shouted in victory.

  Though they fought for their lives, the outcome was not certain. Before the battle was underway Kaichen refused to share parting words with Antuk. His friend would have become distracted by what he considered to be useless chatter.

  Kaichen simply clasped Antuk’s arm at the wrist as his friend haphazardly repeated the gesture. It was a sign of their long friendship when Kaichen only grinned as Antuk blinked his eyes up toward the heavens and then looked away. Antuk stood by his side now, as they fought. Kaichen did not glance over at his friend, he simply trusted that Antuk would fight at his side, no matter the outcome of the battle.

  Farren and Tamol continued to fight beside the men of Kaichen’s band. The enemy raiders were overwhelmed by the sheer number of men that stood against them. It did not matter that many of the men were armed with tools better suited to the reaping of the harvest than for a fight. It did not matter that Tamol heaved rocks and fought with hand and fist, when his weapons were lost in the melee.

  The remaining raiders were willing to fight to the death. It was obvious that the men that had marked themselves as their enemy would fall under the hand of those that they had once sought to enslave.

  “No!” The shout was heard as if from a distance as time slowed and Kaichen turned.

  He saw a familiar figure race toward him. It was Pele, the son of Tamol. Kaichen was distracted momentarily as Pele threw himself in front of him, shoving him to the ground.

  It was only as he freed himself of the man’s cumbersome weight that he saw what had prompted Pele’s actions. The man had taken an arrow to his chest. An arrow meant for Kaichen.

  Tamol’s anguished shout brought a halt to the battle. Kaichen and his men guarded Tamol’s back, holding off the remaining raiders, as Tamol fell to his knees beside his son.

  “Pele, my son.” Tamol’s grief-stricken voice was harsh in the sudden silence.

  Kaichen fell to his knees beside Tamol. The breath left his lungs as he saw the vacant stare in Pele’s eyes. Tamol’s son had already breathed his last. Tamol grabbed hold of Kaichen’s arm and shook him fiercely even as his eyes blazed. Tamol’s eyes were filled with indescribable sorrow.

  “Father!” The shout came from one of Tamol’s other sons. The young man was the image of his fallen brother. His face was filled with fury as he looked upon the body of his brother.

  “Kill them!” The cry went up with renewed vigor as the men caught sight of Pele’s body. He had been a brother to many, a friend to all.

  The raiders that were left alive began to back away with teeth bared and eyes that promised death.

  A lone figure approached, carrying a large bow and it was obvious that this was the man responsible for the arrow which had taken Pele’s life. The man shouted to those that stood with him. Soon a second man joined him.

  Kaichen noticed that the raiders left their fallen companions behind. Animals had more regard for those of their own kind.

  Tamol forced his injured leg to hold him as two of his sons removed Pele’s body. He narrowed his eyes at the two figures that walked out of the darkness. “No, it cannot be.”

  Farren felt the loss of Pele as if the young man had been his own son. He could only imagine the grief that surged through Tamol, even now. Farren inhaled sharply as his eyes took in the sight of the men that walked toward them. Even with their faces painted and their hands reddened with blood, he knew them.

  Kaichen stared at the men that stood before him. He refused to turn his gaze away from the men that threatened their way of life and all that they valued.

  His first impression was that the men that led the raiders were fearless. They walked forward without any way to shield themselves against the countless arrows and spears that were raised toward them. The similarities between the two men told him that they were closely related, perhaps even brothers. The men were dressed similarly, wearing animal skin breechcloths, with bare chests, arms and legs. Their faces were painted black, showing only the whites of their eyes. Both men wore feathers braided into their hair, displaying their status as leaders of their people.

  Kaichen looked between the four men that faced each other. He stood with Farren and Tamol on either side of him, but it was as if he did not stand in their way at all. They studied one another with dark glances that spoke much, but he could not understand the silent communication that passed between them.

  “Tamol. Farren.” The man spoke in a raspy voice, full of loathing.

  His eyes roamed over the men before him and his stance did not speak of defeat. When his gaze landed upon Kaichen his eyes glittered with untold anger.

  “Ni’zin and Tonaka.” Angry disbelief tinged Farren’s words as he named their enemy.

  “You killed my son.” Tamol ground the words out between lips that were pressed together in fury.

  The man called Ni’zin smiled with malicious disregard for Tamol’s grief. He caught and held the gaze of his brother, Tonaka.

  “Your son’s death is the result of the path that you have chosen. Today you and your men stand with those that we have marked as our enemy and so this is what you have become.” Ni’zin’s voice held no remorse.

  “It has always been so.” Tamol stood firm even as Farren voiced his agreement.

  Ni’zin’s eyes landed upon Kaichen again and this time he did not look away.

  Kaichen saw that the markings on the raider’s faces were heavily painted on as if to darken out their features. He heard a familiar tone in the man’s voice, but he could not say why it should be so. He also knew the sound of their names, but he could not identify their source.

  The urge to end the battle once and for all was strong within Kaichen and he stepped forward before Tamol and Farren could speak.

  “You are outmatched and outnumbered. If you wish to allow your men to die by the slaughter, then that is your choice.” Kaichen’s voice rang out over the men that stood in the clearing, ready to fight until they breathed their last breath.

  He felt the loss of Pele as if it was his own brother that had died. It did not matter that Pele had once challenged him, in the end he sacrificed his life so that Kaichen might live, so that their people might survive.

  “The arrow that I sent was meant for you. I will fight you now and end your worthless life.” Ni’zin ground the challenge out between lips that were white with fury.

  Kaichen grunted in agreement, knowing that the men that led the raiders would have to die and yet, there had already been too much death.

  “Take his life and you will have the power that resides within him.” These were the first words that Tonaka had spoken and Kaichen realized that he taunted his brother. Ni’zin raised his chin at the challenge.

  Kaichen did not expect Ni’zin to take action without waiting for his response.

  Before Tamol and Farren could agree or disagree to Ni’zin’s challenge the man ran forward, moving like a dark shadow only to slam into Kaichen.

  Almost at once, the man was upon him, slashing upward with the blade of his knife, seeking the vulnerable places that would accept the force of his knife thrust.

  Kaichen instinctively blocked the thrust of Ni’zin’s knife by catchi
ng the man’s wrist between both of his hands even as they fell. He rolled to lessen the impact upon his body.

  Ni’zin stunned Kaichen by ramming his open palm against his throat. The blow could have been fatal if Ni’zin’s hand had remained clenched around his knife. Kaichen forced his body to respond, even as he gasped for air.

  Tonaka and Ni’zin’s men began to cheer, despite their fallen companions and they watched in silent anticipation as Ni’zin regained his feet. Tonaka threw a spear to Ni’zin, heeding the call of his outstretched hand.

  Kaichen’s spear had been knocked away during battle. He boldly stared up into the face of death and with a roar of denial he leapt forward.

  He swept Ni’zin’s feet out from under him with a move taught to him by Azin. As Ni’zin fell, Kaichen sprang to his feet with Ni’zin’s spear held firmly within his grasp. Just as Kaichen threw himself forward to land a killing blow Tamol’s shouted words broke through the red haze clouding his vision.

  “Do not kill him, he is your uncle!”

  Tamol hoped that his words would resonate with Kaichen. He could see that the younger man was in a killing rage. Any man that moved forward to stop Kaichen’s forward progress would likely find himself impaled upon his spear.

  Kaichen deflected his blow at the last minute, forcing the spear into the hardened ground. Ni’zin rose swiftly and spun to face Kaichen. Tonaka stepped forward to stand at the side of Ni’zin.

  “You are the image of our dead brother.” Ni’zin’s eyes were cold and his gaze held a chill that Kaichen understood with a glance.

  Shared blood did not matter to these men. He knew in an instant that both men had known that he was the son of their brother and yet neither had backed down from the fight.

  They were willing and eager to take his life.

  Kaichen had a hard time reconciling the sight of Ni’zin and Tonaka standing before him. The two men were the lost brothers of Shale, his father. The depth of their depravity was fathomless and chilling.

  “I am Kaichen, the son of your brother.” Kaichen did not speak his father’s name as he spoke for himself, standing to his full height. He did not need to turn and face Tamol and Farren to take notice of their reaction. His bond with both men was visceral and intrinsic, it was as if he knew what Tamol and Farren were thinking before they gathered their thoughts to speak. Kaichen thought that his father must have felt the same kinship that lived within him now.

  Kaichen felt no such bond with Ni’zin and Tonaka, the brothers of his father. Kaichen did not react to the announcement that the men standing before him were closely related by blood ties.

  His face remained impassive and carefully blank. Yet, his mind spun wildly about as he tried to remember the stories of his father as told to him by his mother.

  Kaichen looked between both men. Tonaka’s face showed the most recent signs of age, but Ni’zin was not a young man.

  Both men were solidly built, just as he was, but that was where their similarities ended. The desire for peace did not reside inside of either man. The hope for a life lived upon the land was not in them. They sought only to pillage, plunder and kill. This was their decision and it was by this choice that they lived out their lives taking from others.

  “The Sundancer recreated. Ni’zin. Tonaka. Brothers all. Standing together again, but forever apart.” Antuk’s voice rang out, causing all eyes to turn his way.

  “What nonsense does this large one speak?” Ni’zin growled in a voice barely audible.

  “The Sundancer will not stand for this slight. The Sundancer will defeat you and send you running naked across the low plains.” Antuk spun his knife in his hand and replaced it as if it were no longer necessary. The many weapons that he carried jostled with sound as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

  “Sundancer?” Ni’zin’s laughed cruelly. “Does the Sundancer still live in the stories of your people?”

  “I honor my father’s memory.” Kaichen voice was filled with carefully controlled anger, even as he spoke.

  Ni’zin was silent for a long moment as he held Kaichen’s unflagging stare. Tamol eyed both men even as he pressed his hand over his wounded thigh. The injury had reopened during battle. Farren simply stared at the raiders but his hand never left his weapon and his gaze did not waver.

  “I will order my men to fight to the death.” Ni’zin’s words were thrown down as a challenge. Tonaka stood with him, silent and unmoving but ready to fight no matter the outcome.

  Kaichen took in the situation that they faced. Because of those that had fallen in battle, they outnumbered Ni’zin and Tonaka’s men and even though they offered them a way out, the offer was not readily taken. He considered what he knew about the leaders of the raiders, despite their shared blood.

  Ni’zin and Tonaka were like predators of the land, they fed upon weakness and fear. What would they do if faced with a show of united strength? With calm certainty, Kaichen realized that Antuk had given him the answer.

  “If you give that order, then know that you will fight and die upon land that was never yours to claim or to take for yourself. You will not be allowed to die with honor. We will make certain that you die screaming in agony, begging for your last breath.” Kaichen was in complete control as he spoke for those that had fought at his side, united as one. “Leave this land behind forever and do not return. Do not show your face again. You will not be given a chance to fight for your life and we will not show mercy. Leave now or we will slay any man that stands against us and leave your bodies for the animals of the land to feast upon.”

  Farren threw his spear upon the ground where it landed at the feet of Ni’zin and Tonaka.

  “What are you doing?” Tamol wanted to see Ni’zin and Tonaka dead upon the ground. They did not deserve to live when his son had been killed.

  “Your son would have wanted an end to this battle. Vengeance will not return life to his body, no matter how much you wish that it was so.” Farren spoke to Tamol in the way of men that had been friends throughout their lives. He shared Tamol’s grief and anger, but the death of the men standing before them would only place more blood upon their hands. Tamol warred within himself for a time, shouting in grief before he threw his own spear at Ni’zin and Tonaka’s feet.

  Farren and Tamol were in agreement with Kaichen’s words, though both men wanted to avenge Pele’s death. There would not be any further discussion on their part. They stood with Kaichen, united.

  Ni’zin and Tonaka were silent long enough to cause tension to mount between the armed men that faced each other. Their response would mean the difference between life and death for their men.

  Without a backward glance, first Tonaka and then Ni’zin turned away, leading the few men that remained with them.

  Soon they were outside of the reach of spears, knives and arrows. Soon the men known as the old enemy were mere shadows upon the land and then they were no more.

  Chapter Thirty

  “Kaichen.” Amara swayed for a moment and then she was in his arms. She had no memory of moving, but she must have run forward. Kaichen held her firmly as he breathed in the scent of her hair and she pressed her lips along the line of his jaw.

  Amara made a sound of joy and Kaichen held her tighter, despite the shallow wounds that bled freely upon his arms, chest and legs.

  “Hush, little one.” Kaichen kissed the top of Amara’s head as she shuddered in his arms.

  “You are bleeding. Let me see to your wounds.” Amara’s clever hands were quick to wash and clean her husband’s injuries.

  Kaichen had thrown himself into battle with a single-minded purpose and any man that stood against him soon fell under the slice of his knife or the thrust of his spear. For a time, he lost himself in the fight against men that sought to cause harm. It was a fight that they should have lost.

  At first, Ni’zin and Tonaka’s men had the advantage, but Tamol and Farren had changed the course of the battle. Ni’zin’s raiders did not expect m
en that were harvesters of the land to rise up and fight. Tamol and Farren’s men were harvesters and hunters, but today they had become something more. Warriors.

  Amara wept openly as Kaichen tried his best to assure her that he was well. It was only Antuk’s voice that caused the tears to cease and a smile to blossom.

  “If you use up all of your tears, when will we have rain again? Cloud Bringing Woman should not be so wasteful.” Antuk chided as he stared at Amara in consternation.

  Amara laughed, even as her tears continued to fall. She hastily wiped her face upon the garment that Antuk handed her as he watched her in expectation.

  “It is good.” Antuk proclaimed.

  Kaichen saw the smiling faces of his people and he heard the shouts of victory from the men that had fought with him. He remembered those that had stood at his back to protect him from the blow of their enemy. He remembered those that had fallen never to rise again.

  “Like the coils of a clay pot, time has circled back upon itself and set right the wrongs of long ago.” Antuk’s words were meant for Kaichen, but Denoa heard him as well and she grew still and silent.

  The people settled in where they were, building up a fire and carrying away those that had fallen in battle. Kaichen spent a quiet moment with Tamol and his sons as they carefully tended to Pele’s body.

  “Your loss, is my loss. In the death of your son, I have lost a man that I would have been glad to call brother.” Kaichen’s voice brimmed with intensity.

  “I have taken another son, to stand in the place of the one that died with honor.” Tamol claimed Kaichen, though his words were spoken from deep within his chest and grief had etched new lines upon his weathered face.

  Kaichen expected anger from Pele’s brothers and he expected shattering grief from Tamol. The men circled him, placing their hands upon his head as they spoke in low tones.

  “I am Chaska, younger brother to the one that lies before us.” Chaska did not speak Pele’s name. “You are now my brother.”