“You going to make us something to eat?” shouted the second story man as he stood at the window leaning out.
Mistake looked down and could just see a tuft of the man’s hair. She froze. A barely audible reply was heard from the first floor and then the man’s head returned inside the window. Mistake swallowed hard and batted MistyTrail’s hands away from her legs. She lowered herself through the window.
“Okay,” Mistake whispered, “I hope you have a good sense of balance. We are both going out the window to the small ledge that runs along the front of the building. I will go to one side, and you will go to the other. When we are in position, pull your end of the rope out of the window and let it drop down your side of the house. Make sure you don’t let the end fall where it can be seen from below.”
“Then what?” asked MistyTrail. “Is the rope tied to something?”
“No,” Mistake shook her head. “We will have to time this perfectly. We must counteract each other’s weight and movements.”
“That is crazy,” frowned MistyTrail. “Why risk falling when we can tie the rope to something?”
“Because they must not find the rope,” explained Mistake. “If there are soldiers watching for intruders, we don’t want an army chasing us. Let’s just get away from here before the boat arrives.”
MistyTrail frowned but nodded. She waited until Mistake had exited the window before stepping through it herself. She balanced on the narrow ledge and grabbed the slanted roof with one hand. She worked her way over to the eave and waited for Mistake to signal that it was time to pull the rope out. When the signal was given MistyTrail pulled gently on her strand of the rope. She pulled smoothly and coiled it under the hand that was holding onto the roof. In just a few minutes, she had the loose end of the rope in hand. She gently lowered the loose end down the side of the house and grabbed the rope on the roof until she felt Mistake pull it taut.
“Hey the window up top is already unshuttered,” said a loud voice from inside the house. “Must have been quite a wind from that storm. I am glad we decided to ride it out in the city.”
There was an unintelligible reply from the first floor, and the loud voice laughed. Mistake made an urgent hand motion to MistyTrail and started nodding her head exaggeratedly. When she nodded the third time, both women stepped off the ledge.
MistyTrail used her foot to keep her from slamming into the side of the house as she dangled on the rope. She smoothly lowered herself hand-over-hand until she reached the ground. She peaked around the front of the house and saw Mistake was also on the ground. She was pulling the rope over the roof, so MistyTrail let go.
MistyTrail crept past the front of the house while Mistake coiled the rope. A sail was visible in the distance, and she silently pointed it out to Mistake. Mistake nodded and pointed to the nearby jungle. Both women ran softly towards the jungle. Mistake led the way into the dense, wet foliage. As soon as the house was no longer visible, she stopped.
“Where in the world are we?” she asked with exasperation. “How will we ever find out if we have to avoid the local people?”
“I don’t know,” chuckled MistyTrail, “but I doubt that anyone would talk to you dressed like that anyway.”
Mistake looked down at her oversized red uniform and laughed. “I suppose you are right,” she chuckled, “but I would not be so quick to criticize. You haven’t seen yourself yet. Let’s get changed.”
“Let’s not until we get away from all these wet plants,” countered MistyTrail. “I would like to put my own clothes on dry. Which way do we go?”
“Towards the city,” answered Mistake. “It is probably the only place we can go to find out where we are and how to get home. I will lead.”
They walked through the jungle for a couple of hours before the vegetation began to thin. The ground vegetation began to give way to large trees, and eventually they found them selves in a mature forest.
“This is better,” MistyTrail said as she opened Mistake’s pack and withdrew their clothes. “What do we do with the uniforms?”
“I don’t know,” Mistake said as she dropped the coil of rope and stripped off her uniform. “If we leave them here, they will raise questions if they are found. I guess we should carry them with us for now.”
“That leg looks terrible,” frowned MistyTrail as she saw Mistake’s naked leg. “I thought you took care of it?”
“I wiped it clean as best I could,” declared Mistake. “What did you expect me to do with it?”
“Don’t you know any healing magic?” asked MistyTrail as she knelt in front of Mistake and examined the torn skin.
“Healing magic?” echoed Mistake. “Why would I? I am not a mage.”
“I bet you are and don’t know it,” responded MistyTrail as she cast a healing spell on the open wound. “You know how to use an air tunnel, and that is magic.”
“Do you think you could teach me?” brightened Mistake as she stared at her leg.
“Sure,” grinned MistyTrail. “I bet we could learn a lot from each other.”
Mistake looked down at her leg and grinned. The wound was closed. She ran her fingers over the red area of skin.
“That is magic that I could use,” she smiled as she put on her clothes. “Which way do we go from here?”
“I don’t know,” frowned MistyTrail. “I lost my sense of direction in the jungle. We should be able to find the mountains easily enough. If we climb up them a bit, maybe we will be able to see the city again.”
“I will lead,” offered Mistake. “As long as we are going uphill we should be fine. Sooner or later we will be high enough to see where we are.”
The forest was fairly dark, but occasionally the sunlight filtered through the leaves of the large trees. Mistake led the way until they came to a sizeable clearing. She gazed up at the angry sky and caught a glimpse of the high sun.
“Time for the midday meal,” she announced. “What food do we have left?”
“Not an awful lot,” frowned MistyTrail as she rummaged through her pack. “The bread was destroyed when it got wet. I have six pieces of dried meat. It should last us until we get to the city.”
“Let’s share one,” suggested Mistake. “I haven’t seen a single animal since entering this strange forest. Don’t you find that strange?”
“I have heard some birds,” agreed MistyTrail, “but it is strange not to see any other animals. Maybe the storm scattered them. In some ways this forest reminds me a bit of the Sakova. We will not starve in here. There is plenty to eat. You just have to know where to look. The bark of these trees is edible, although it is best if you boil it. There are plenty of mushrooms, and most of the insects are safe.”
“I think I would prefer a nice rabbit,” grimaced Mistake. “Let’s continue walking while it is light out.”
MistyTrail nodded and took over the lead. Several hours later she halted and held up her hand for silence. Mistake stopped abruptly, her pointy ears trying to detect what MistyTrail had heard. Suddenly, a large crack rent the air. Seconds later the ground trembled beneath their feet.
“What was that?” Mistake whispered.
“A tree falling,” MistyTrail whispered back. “I thought I had heard distant chopping sounds. Now I am sure of it. Someone just felled one of these giants. Let’s move closer,” she urged. “Maybe they are friendly.”
“Use caution,” warned Mistake. “I am not ready to trust anyone until I find out where we are.”
MistyTrail nodded and started walking softly. Mistake followed her as the thief’s eyes constantly scanned the forest around them. It took almost an hour for the stealthy approach, and the sunlight was beginning to fade entirely from the forest. MistyTrail suddenly moved swiftly and hid behind one of the massive trees. Mistake slipped silently to her side.
“Did you see what I saw?” gulped MistyTrail.
“I did,” Mistake nodded nervously. “I have never seen such a thing before. What are they?”
“They look
like large apes,” whispered MistyTrail, “but they are using tools to cut the trees. I thought I was imagining it.”
“Then we are having the same nightmare,” frowned Mistake. “Did you see any people directing them?”
“I only got a glimpse,” MistyTrail shook her head. “We need to get a better look. I am going to move closer. You stay here.”
“Not a chance,” Mistake said as a knife slid into her hand. “I will stay a little ways behind you to watch your back.”
MistyTrail smiled and nodded as she dropped to the forest floor and scampered towards a tree closer to the logging activity. An hour later MistyTrail was positioned where she had a view of a large cleared area. Thirty huge ape-like creatures were dragging the felled giants onto massive wagons. She turned and waved Mistake forward.
“Not a human in sight,” MistyTrail whispered as Mistake arrived alongside her.
Mistake was about to reply when one of the apes started walking towards the tree they were hiding behind. He carried a large axe, and it was clear that he intended to fell the tree they were hiding behind. Suddenly, one of the other apes shouted as he pointed to the sky.
“Stop,” bellowed the lead ape. “The day is done.”
The ape with the axe turned around and gazed towards the lead ape and then looked up at the darkening sky and nodded. He strode back to the wagons and threw his axe into one of them. Mistake slowly exhaled her held breath as the apes gathered in front of the wagons and picked up the long tongues. They grunted loudly as they struggled to start the wagons rolling. Once the wheels began to turn, the apes pulled the wagons with surprising ease. Within half an hour, they were gone from sight.
Mistake and MistyTrail stepped from behind the tree and surveyed the cleared area. Huge stumps dotted the landscape, but the cleared area also afforded a view of the mountain beyond it.
“That is our destination for this night,” pointed MistyTrail. “I want to be well above this area before the morning sun. I do not know what they were, but I am not anxious to go against them with only knives.”
“You will get no argument from me,” promised Mistake. “I doubt our knives would do more than scratch them. I am not getting a warm feeling about this land. Let’s get out of here.”
* * *
The squad of Imperial Guards escorted the Sakovan wagon through the streets of Alamar. The citizens stared in horror as they watched FalconEye drive the wagon towards the Imperial Guard headquarters. He sat holding the reins, but his face was a mask of pain, and the reins were held loosely in limp hands. They saw two arrows sticking out of his back as the wagon passed by. The Imperial Guards escorted the wagon solemnly and did not interfere when the citizens filed into the street and followed the wagon. The wagon went directly to the headquarters building and stopped.
General Manitow and Mayor Reaker were on the steps of the building when the wagon stopped. Temiker and Ukaro had just been leaving to return to the schoolhouse. They stopped and returned to the wagon when they saw it. The squad leader dismounted and marched up the steps to stand before the general.
“He would not let us tend to him,” reported the Imperial Guard. “He said that Imperial Guards had massacred them. He has only returned here because he had no choice. My men guided his team to the city gates. What shall we do with him? He is nearly dead.”
Temiker and Ukaro rushed to the wagon. They each climbed up to the seat of the wagon from different sides.
“Perhaps the mages can save him,” the general said softly. “What of the others?”
“Their bodies are in the back of the wagon,” the soldier replied with a lump in his throat. “I think he was trying to take their bodies home to the Sakova. I have never seen such strength of will in one so young. I do not know how he is still alive.”
One of the citizens looked inside the wagon. She saw the bodies of the other Sakovans and screamed. The word spread through the crowd like fire through a thatched roof. Within seconds the mob closed around the wagon. When two men reached into the wagon and dragged out the body of SpringThaw, the Imperial Guards moved to disperse the crowd. The squad leader ran down the steps and started shouting orders for his men to control the crowd, but it was a futile effort.
The angry mob pushed the soldiers away from the wagon. The general stepped inside the building and called for reinforcements. When he returned to the steps he saw the crowd carrying the bodies away. The crowd of angry citizens created a human corridor, keeping the Imperial Guards away as others lifted the dead Sakovans and carried them towards the marketplace. As the reinforcements began surging out of the building, the general ordered them to halt.
“Do not interfere,” commanded the general. “They are taking the bodies to the marketplace. Cordon off the area and keep things from getting out of hand, but do not interfere with their sorrow. I do not want us attacking our own people.”
“I had better go to the marketplace,” stated Mayor Reaker. “I think the people fully understand what this tragedy means to our city. I must explain this accident, or your soldiers may well be blamed for what has happened.”
“This was no accident,” scowled the general. “This is what our future is now that the Katana has decided that these Sakovans are our enemy. You had best explain to the citizens that we cannot depend upon the Sakovans for any more food. We are on our own now.”
The mayor nodded sadly to the general. He walked to the marketplace and pushed his way through the crowd to see what was happening. When he got close enough to see, his mouth opened in amazement. Each of the dead Sakovans had been placed on one of the tables in the marketplace. Women knelt alongside the tables and cried hysterically. Others placed jewelry and flowers beside the bodies.
The Imperial Guards sent to keep order stood silently around the perimeter of the marketplace. They kept their backs to the nearby buildings, and it appeared as if they wanted to be somewhere else. The mayor could hardly blame them. Suddenly, the mayor’s arm was grabbed, and he was pulled towards the body of SpringThaw.
“Is this what our protectors are supposed to do for us?” shouted the man who had dragged the mayor from the crowd. “Are we now to starve to death because these young folks were Sakovans?”
The Imperial Guards around the marketplace tensed and began to close inward to rescue the mayor. The mayor held up his free arm to halt their advance.
“Maintain your positions,” shouted the mayor as he pulled his arm free from the citizen.
The mayor turned in a slow circle as his eyes scanned the angry mob. He saw an empty table nearby and he jumped up onto it so the crowd could see him.
“Citizens of Alamar,” he shouted, “hear my words. I grieve alongside you for the loss of the brave Sakovans. They brought us food when we had none. We owe our lives to them, but there are things that you must understand in your grief. The Imperial Guards of Alamar did not do this nasty deed. Do not take your hostilities out on them. They are here to protect you and had granted the Sakovans safe passage.”
“Who did it then?” shouted one of the mob. “We heard it was Imperial Guards. Where are they?”
“What does it matter?” screamed another. “We will never see another wagon of food from the Sakovans. They may be willing to share their food, but who can blame them for not forfeiting their lives?”
“The Imperial Guards who did this are from Okata,” declared Mayor Reaker. “General Manitow has ordered their arrest. There will be an investigation, and I assure you that I will demand swift punishment from the Katana for this deed. Still, we must prepare to fend for ourselves where food is concerned. We can no longer depend upon the Sakovans for our meals.”
“I heard that the Katana has declared war on the Sakovans,” shouted a man. “Is this true?”
Mayor Reaker bit his lip as he tried to figure out how to answer the question. His eyes scanned the crowd in search of a safe exit. He suddenly felt very vulnerable.
“I have not received word of that from the Katana,” he finally
said. “The troops from Okata supposedly carried word of such a decree, but I am hesitant to believe the words of a group who would slaughter innocents as they have done. Let me go speak with General Manitow about this accusation.”
The mayor jumped off the table and quickly made his way through the crowd before anyone else decided to grab him. He ran back to the Imperial Guard headquarters and into the general’s office.
“They are honoring the dead Sakovans as they would a hero,” panted the mayor. “I think we have serious problems on our hands.”
“I gathered as much when they carried the bodies away,” nodded the general. “I can hardly blame the people. Let them grieve as they wish. It will distill their anger.”
“I do not think so,” argued the mayor. “They are an unruly mob. Your own soldiers can sense it. They are failing to make the distinction between our troops and the Katana’s.”
“In fact,” sighed the general, “there is little distinction. While it was not our men who ambushed the Sakovans, it could well be us that strikes the next time.”
“Then you believe that Captain Gachiral was telling the truth?” asked Mayor Reaker.
“Yes, I do,” nodded the general. “I only demanded confirmation to forestall any attacks. I thought that we could just let the Sakovans return home without any bloodshed. They earned that much from us by bringing the food, but we do not have the option of defying an edict from the Katana. When General Romero arrives here, we will be at war with the Sakovans. There is nothing that we can do about it.”
“Then we are doomed,” sighed the mayor. “Without Sakovan food, many will die.”
“The best approach is to end the war quickly,” retorted General Manitow. “Perhaps the Sakovans will surrender. They certainly appeared peaceful enough when they delivered the food.”
“You don’t really believe that, do you?” questioned the mayor with disbelief.
“No,” sighed the general, “but neither do I believe that the Sakovans are anxious for war. I truly believe that they hoped that the food shipments would buy peace for themselves. They were wrong.”
Island of Darkness Page 13
