“Now go quickly,” said Rani, when Bianca had come back. “Stay hidden until you hear us attack and only fire if you are needed. Your job is the horses.”
Hulagu left his sentry post and moved further forward to the trees above the slope. Father Christopher and Stefan followed him. Behind him he heard a kiss. That must be the mages. “No magic,” he heard Rani say. “Someone might feel it if we use it this close to their lair, so we both use bows only and make sure they are plain heads so there is no loud noise.” Theodora made no reply, but he could hear them going back to the cave. By the time they had joined the others with bows Bianca and Basil had already met at the bottom of the slope and had moved towards a dip in the road and some trees. They should be able to take cover there.
The five that were left on the rise gained their positions. To the north the riders were just disappearing into some trees a hand of hundreds of paces away. To the south he could see that the two people had moved off the rocky slope and were already headed into some degree of hiding. I can see them, but someone moving quickly along the path probably will not. The rise and fall of the road will see to that. From behind him Rani spoke again: “Hulagu, you can surely hide better than I can. You give the order to fire. The rest of us will stay concealed until you say so.”
Hulagu nodded and moved to a better spot. The rest went to ground behind trees and lapsed into silence. Gradually the keen of hearing would be aware of the sound of approaching horses and soon all could surely hear them. Getting close to their home the bandits are growing careless and are paying no attention to either caution or concealment. They must have been safe here in their village for quite a while and perhaps these riders don’t even know of their band’s losses on the plains. Perhaps they expect to be under observation, which they are, but not as they would have wished. The sounds they made grew louder. Hulagu peered around his tree. These riders are riding for speed and comfort, not for battle. Their horses look tired. They must have ridden hard, perhaps even through the night. The mail was held up from the front of the Havenite’s helm and all of their shields hung from their saddles or backs rather than being on their arms. The first rider approached the rock he had fixed in his mind. “Get ready,” he said softly. Four on the slope stood and took aim from behind their trees. Father Christopher had to stand clear to swing his sling.
~~~
Rani
Still speaking softly Hulagu said, “Loose”. Four arrows and a bullet streaked down the slope while the people who sent them reloaded. All of the missiles hit. Karikeya, God of Battle, I didn’t co-ordinate our fire. I have made another mistake. Three shafts hit the Khitan at the front and he immediately slumped sidewise, falling out of his saddle, dead before he knew it. The third rider, the Havenite, was riding with his camail held up at the front and sides and had been rewarded with a shaft into his neck. She had shot at him. It wasn’t fatal and he began screaming incoherently and trying to claw it out. The last rider, a Freeholder, was leading the spare horses. By accident or design Father Christopher’s sling bullet hit him on the helm. Its force meant that it didn’t need to penetrate and the rider slumped forward onto his pommel, dead or unconscious.
The second rider, also a Khitan, reached back and started to remove a shield from where it hung off his saddle as he looked wildly around. The fourth and fifth riders, both Freeholders, did not hesitate. Both dug their heels into the flanks of their horses, spurring them forward. The Khitan located the figures on the slope above him just as the second flight of arrows came in. A shaft took him in the eye and another at the base of the throat. He toppled backwards off his horse, his foot catching in his stirrup. Rani hit the fourth rider in the head. She muttered a curse as the shot glanced off his helm. Another shaft hit the fifth bandit in the body. The rider had a steel-armoured torso, but leaning forward to spur his horse on had exposed his armpit and the shaft took him there, but it did not stop him. Father Christopher’s sling was slower than the bows, but surer in its effects. Out of mercy he had aimed at the wounded Havenite, who stopped screaming abruptly as the bullet took him on the temple.
The two surviving riders spurred out of the melee of plunging horses, trying to break out of the killing ground. Arrows hit them, others missed. None did vital damage. Suddenly, ahead of the bandits a mounted figure and one on foot appeared twenty paces from them. Rani noted that Basil had thrown a martobulli as he appeared and this took the lead rider in the face as he leant forward. He toppled, briefly clutching futilely at his face. The second rider’s horse stopped dead as Bianca urged her horses to rear in front of him. The rider had to clutch at his horse to avoid falling off and this momentary stillness was all the archers on the ridge needed to drive home several shafts and bring him down.
I haven’t had to say anything once it all started and now it was over.
There were no more targets to fire at as Rani lowered her bow and watched the two below at work. Bianca now had to calm her horses which, excited by the familiar sound and smell of battle, were primed to fight, before she could round up those of the bandits…but it mattered little. Sirocco and Firestorm blocked the way forward for the bandit’s horses, rearing up and stopping their headlong rush dead. Basil moved forward and started to gather up loose reins as the rest of the ambushers came down the slope towards them. Two of the horses were pack animals, and there was a spare mount as well. The bodies were thrown over saddles and the arrows that had missed targets were gleaned. Rani got her lover to use her senses to make sure that no magic item was left lying around in the killing ground that might be sensed by the watcher and his device. Blood was soon covered up by dust and dirt as Hulagu was the last up the slope. As he backed up he swept at the ground with a small bush he had broken off to use like a broom. I would not have thought of that, but it seems that this sort of thing is normal for the Khitan.
By the time they had finished their task the horses had reached the top of the slope and were moving behind the trees. Hulagu resumed a watch while the others laid out the bodies behind the screen of trees. Stefan and Basil quickly and pragmatically started to empty the pouches of the bandits and strip their bodies of anything that might be useful. They put the money and valuables in one heap, their weapons in another, and other items in a third.
“Basil,” Theodora said in a shocked tone in Darkspeech, “you cannot do that. It is robbing the dead.” Rani realised that she had been thinking more or less the same. Touching the dead is bad enough. Robbing them…
“Pardon me, my lady,” replied Basil, in the same tongue. “They don’t need any of this now,” he waved his hand towards the growing piles, “and we might. If we were at home this would all go into Treasury’s coffers. Here we are the Treasury. Anyway, it was probably all stolen in the first place and we should be sure of what they had.”
“That is right,” added Father Christopher, changing the conversation to what passed as their common language of Hindi so that all could understand, straightening up from where he was saying prayers over the dead for their souls. “These men are bandits. Look at the money. There are coins from everywhere, some I don’t even know, and their jewellery must be looted. Some are obviously meant for women and the styles are all different—even I can see that. See that cup,” he pointed at a large ornate gold vessel with an even larger base. It had jewels inlaid on it, gaps where some were now missing and there was a large dent in it, “That is a chalice stolen from a church—not one of ours—I think it is from Freehold. If you have qualms about taking any of this then I suggest that you take your share and give it as alms for the poor. Of course, Astrid says that I am very poor and so is Bianca so you could just give it to us,” he said cheekily. Now that it is put like that…I suppose at home we would do the same. The priest smiled and his infectious good humour broke the mood. Grins appeared all around and they resumed their tasks.
Once the horses had been stripped of their gear Bianca took them back to where the other horses were tethered. They had been restive near the bodie
s, but calmed down near the other horses and under her ministration. She only has to tend one arrow wound and some other minor cuts before she can feed and water them. Theodora and Rani began to check the bandit’s gear for magic while others dragged the bodies down the talus-covered southern slope, away from the water, and out of sight of the watch point, and buried them under rocks so that they soon disappeared.
Just as the burial party were returning up the hill for the last time from their grisly task Hulagu softly called out from his watch, “I can see Thord.”
“Just Thord?” asked Basil quickly and with worry plain in his voice.
“Yes, no sign of Astrid…wait he is well in the clear now…I can see Astrid now, I couldn’t see her when she was moving in the woods. She must be a very good hunter.”
They finished stowing away the useful items. Ayesha is correcting me on one of the potions? Rani sniffed again. She seems to be right and I was wrong on my first guess. Hmmm. It seemed that the bandits carried several different healing draughts as well as a large supply of dried betterberries. Several of the weapons they carried were magically enhanced as well. Those using horse bows were eager to divide up their arrows.
~~~
The group gathered on top of the slope as Thord and Astrid approached. Astrid paused briefly to look at where the bodies were buried before resuming her climb. As she neared the top she asked, “Who did you bury?”
“Bandits,” said Basil, before losing his reserve and rushing down to greet her. He has stopped on the slope so that they are the same height and seems to be looking her over to make sure she is unwounded. She is doing the same. Now they are reaching out and their heads are moving forward, so did hers. They are kissing. They are an odd couple, but they do seem fond of each other.
Thord kept trudging up the slope before saying, a little breathlessly, “It is so much easier climbing when you are on a sheep. Better get back under cover. It is near midday and time for t’eir watcher to look around.”
“We weren’t expecting you yet,” said Rani.
“We found a way in to t’em,” replied Thord, “’n’ we t’ought it best to get back to you so t’at we can attack quickly. T’ey are very low on numbers now, but seem to be expecting reinforcements at any time.”
“They can expect all they want, but they won’t arrive. You just passed their bodies,” stated Rani. “Now, let us have something to eat and we can find out what you know and then work out what to do next.”
Once they had exchanged their news, Rani concluded, “So, if we leave now then we can be in place to attack them tonight. Correct?” Astrid nodded. “And we can get into the village easily from the gap?” This time Thord nodded at her. “So how do we make the attack? We need to take out the watch quietly first, then neutralise the mages and then the soldiers. They are on their home ground and if we use magic on the watch the mages will probably have a chance to react.” Rani looked around. Everyone has gone quiet.
“With Allah’s grace I can get into the village quietly and take out the watch,” Ayesha said in muted tones into the silence.
“Aren’t you a runaway slave dancer?” asked Rani suspiciously. Having been corrected on the nature of that potion I am no longer entirely sure that this is the case, unless the Caliphate woman is a very unusual slave indeed.
“I am,” Ayesha replied, “but it amused my master to train me in some other skills as well. It was by using them that I was able to escape the Caliphate. Get me above the village with a rope and I will get you the watch. If I can take a rope and a grapple with me I might even be able to get into the mage’s building—but I won’t know that until I see it.”
Rani studied her, weighing up the slight figure in a new light. She thought about what she knew about the mountain realm that the girl hailed from for a moment before saying anything. “I notice that you pray even more than our good Father. Are you temple trained?” she asked softly. She looked around. Only Ayesha seems to grasp the significance of that question. The rest are just looking blank at the exchange. Mind you, Basil always looks blank.
Rani looked hard at the Caliphate girl’s face. That pause before answering is all I really needed. Ayesha now nodded. “I am,” she answered softly.
Rani nodded back and just said, “We will talk more later.” She said to the others confidently, “Ayesha will take care of the guards.” Now the others look surprised at my more assured tone. “Now for what the rest of us will do…Basil …”
“I will be looking after my lady,” interrupted Basil. “She will be casting spells and will not want to be interfered with by rude people with swords.”
“I was actually about to suggest that. You are ill suited for open combat with your shortswords, but anything coming at her is likely to be close, and that you can deal with. For the same reason I will be keeping Bianca with me. Her daggers are meant for close work as well.” She was turning from person to person now. As the battle leader I need to be confident. Now, if the plan survives first contact all will be well. “Father Christopher, you are our only healer. We need to keep you safe and you might not be able to defend yourself down in the village, so you should stay on the ledge. You can use your sling from there. Astrid, your spear is not suited to this work in buildings, but your bow is still needed. You can also stay on the ledge and keep an eye on things. You will need to keep a sharp eye out, as it will be your bow that will guard our backs and stop our enemy from moving around between buildings. Thord can come with us. Hulagu, you are more used to fighting mounted, but this time you will have to take Stefan and be responsible for their soldiers. There are six of them, as well as their leaders so, even if Ayesha can take all of the watch, you will still be outnumbered. There are two or three mages for Theodora and myself as well, so we must take advantage of as much surprise as we can. Astrid…do you think that we could get the slaves to fight?”
“Some might, if they were sure we were winning, but I doubt it,” replied Astrid. “Most are women and young girls, undoubtedly chosen for their appearance rather than for a skill with weapons. There are many more of them here than there are bandits, but they do not seem to resist and they obey orders meekly—even when they are treated very badly.”
Rani thought for a moment. “Then we will only take time to free them if a group has eliminated all the threats that are likely to come on them. Now, does anyone have any comments or questions?”
Bianca spoke up. “What about the horses?”
“We have to leave them tethered here with enough food and water and hope that they do not break lose and we lose them,” replied Rani. “We cannot take them with us and we have too few people to leave someone behind to look after them.”
“My horses do not like tethers. I never use them…and what about wild beasts coming and attacking them?”
Hulagu laughed and even Bianca glaring at him didn’t stop him grinning. “Your horses,” he said with an amused tone in his voice, “they may be pets to you, but normal people…even bandits…are likely to be scared of them and anything less than a dragon is likely to feel the same way. If you tell them to stay put and guard the rest of your dowry herd, I am sure they will somehow understand you. I am almost willing to bet that they will find a few more horses to add to your collection if we are away long enough.”
Bianca tried to look indignant and failed.
“Then it is settled,” said Rani. “Get ready, bring up fodder and water and then we will set out.”
Chapter V
Rani
I have never heard them all so silent as they don their armour and make other preparations. She saw, as she was helping her lover armour up, that they were each turning to one another to be checked for anything loose or that might rattle or catch on things. Rani carefully noted that, after she had prayed, Ayesha had opened her pack and donned a pair of soft boots that she had not previously worn, that looked as if they would make no noise when moving. She changed her normal headscarf and veil to one that was much darker in colour
and showed an irregular pattern in dark grey. She had also put on soft leather gloves and looped a light rope over her shoulders, adding a grapnel from Thord’s saddlebag and winding cloth around its prongs to soften any sound it made in a very professional manner. She strapped scabbards with throwing knives onto her forearms and thighs outside her clothes.
She saw that Bianca was watching with interest and that she moved some of her blades around to the same configurations.
Next Ayesha undid her belt taking off pouches and putting a selection of different shaped blades from her pack onto her belt, moving them in and out of their scabbards smoothly. I am sure that Ayesha has never been seen with these blades before and they are quite unusual and…specialised. One had a thin straight blade, t-shaped in cross-section. It was needle-sharp at the point and widened in a curve into a normal blade-width at the hilt. I have seen such blades before being worn by the devotees of Kali. They are designed to enter mail armour and open it up, even if it was riveted, while they felt for a vital organ. I was fairly sure before, but now I am absolutely certain where Ayesha has received at least some of her training. Why do we have an assassin with us? Her target must not be one of us. She has had ample opportunity to kill any one of us and still escape unharmed and she is now being quite open about her skills. Now that we are in the field and away from others it seems that the dancing girl has completely disappeared and been replaced by a silent killer in the night. After tonight I must take the girl aside and ask her. I won’t worry the rest now by revealing what I know. But how should I dress?…Padding and helm, but no bow and lots of wands. Some of my arrows may, however, still be useful.
She took five that she had enhanced for Astrid. “I know that my bow is weaker than yours,” she said, “but it shouldn’t be enough to make a difference in their flight. These arrows will explode in fire when they hit—loudly and strongly. One should easily kill any unprotected person. I made them myself and I know their power. I caution you though to only use them once the battle has been joined and noise will not be important any more. Do not use them lightly. I cannot make more of them easily here in the field.”
Engaging Evil (Warriors of Vhast Book 2) Page 5
