Pulse: Book One of the Zoya Chronicles

by Kate Sander

  Frozen to the bone, he rose from the damp forest floor. There was a little creek close to his camp and he went for a drink, staring at his reflection. Gaunt, with hollow eyes and a patchy beard, he looked terrible. The only thing he’d brought were his daggers. So, that meant surviving on roots and berries. Not like he could hunt like Senka. Tears threatened to surface. He tried to shut them down but he couldn’t. He wasn’t as good as Senka at anything.

  Wiping the tears away, he tried to prepare himself as best he could for the role he needed to play.

  After fleeing into the woods, the only thing he could remember was that look of utter betrayal on her face. And she’d called him a coward. And spat on his name. This life wasn’t for him without her. He loved her, but his terrible mistakes made it impossible for them to be together.

  It was all his fault. He didn’t want to live anymore, but dammit he would go out in a way she would know he wasn’t a coward.

  Creeping to the edge of the forest, he listened intently, staying there for well over an hour. If they didn’t show up soon, he would move a few hundred yards down the edge and see if they came. He would have climbed a tree, but he couldn’t risk falling and hurting himself. Maybe he was a coward, but he would put it to good use.

  He was just getting ready to move when he heard it. A dull, steady thump across the plain. The Sun Gods were coming. It took a full hour for them to materialize on the horizon. Thousands of them, marching in time in full armour. He couldn’t believe it. No leader would be that stupid. Marching your men in full armour assured the opponents that they would be tired.

  Senka would be able to deal with this. If he played his part well, they might even have a shot at winning. He fingered his mother’s ring he had on a chain around his neck. A small shred of hope weaseled in with the despair. Maybe, someday, he’d see it on Senka’s finger.

  A man led the troops, riding his horse tall, a crown on his head. Jules recognized him. It was the Head of Peace. His heart sank. The Queen must be dead then. She’d remarried. And been killed for it. Alive, she’d never have allowed for a march on the Melanthios. If she was alive it would have been done in secrecy. Therefore, with the new King leading the march, he deduced she was dead. This made his job much more important.

  He waited until they were close to the trees to burst out of the forest. Looking scared and desperate, he made sure he kept looking over his shoulder as if he was being chased. When he looked ahead and saw hundreds of bows pointing at him, he realized he didn’t have to act scared anymore. Fear. Real and shocking rifled through him. He skidded to a stop and held his hands over his head.

  “Don’t shoot,” the King said. “Not yet, anyway. Let the Head of Intelligence talk to him. He will get the truth. This is a good spot to set up camp.”

  The General yelled something and all the troops, except for the archers, broke rank. Jules kept his hands well visible over his head. He was hoping with everything this worked. If it didn’t, all was lost.

  The Head of Intelligence dismount his horse and head towards him. Jules recognized him as the old Head of Peace’s lackey, the one he had sent out of the bar.

  Intelligence crossed the open plain between them and walked right up to him, “Hands,” Intelligence said. Jules put them together in front of him. Intelligence bound them quickly with rope.

  “No questions out here, we have a wagon equipped with all the tools I need.”

  Time to start acting, “Whatever. Just get me out of here. They’re going to kill me!” Jules sobbed.

  Intelligence stared at him and nodded. He led him to a huge enclosed wagon being pulled by six massive horses. A hard push in the back sent Jules tumbling inside. Only when the door was closed did the archers lower their bows.

  The wagon was dark. Intelligence plugged in a Pulse pack and the wagon lit up with a flickering blue light. There was a chair in the center of the room. Jules steeled himself. He knew what was coming.

  Intelligence led him to the chair and bound his ankles and wrists with the leather straps on the chair.

  “My name is Sebastian,” he said. “I don’t go by Intelligence. The last user of the name came to a dismal end, one that I don’t want to repeat. During our talk, you can call me Sebastian.”

  Jules nodded vehemently.

  “Good, now you’re going to tell me your story. From the beginning. If I don’t like what you’re saying…” He drifted off, “Well I better like what you’re saying. Is that clear?”

  Jules nodded again.

  “Good.” Sebastian drew up a chair, “Now let us begin. Why are you here? You don’t look like a Melanthios.”

  Jules shook his head, “No I’m not. The Head of Peace sent me. I was the spy he met in the alehouse before the jailbreak a few months ago.”

  Sebastian stood up quickly and punched him in the face. Jules felt his head snap back and pain exploded.

  “I swear,” Jules mumbled. His eye was already swelling shut, “I swear he sent me out here.”

  “Oh I believe you,” Sebastian said, rubbing his knuckles and sitting back down, “That was for the lack of contact. You sent one letter. We have been riding blind since. I thought you were supposed to keep in contact.”

  Jules nodded again, his head was clearing from the blow. “I meant to! But she caught me. That bitch, the prisoner. She caught me sending the letter. She killed my raven when it flew back.”

  Sebastian stared at him. To Jules it seemed like ages. He normally didn’t lie, so he was trying to believe his own story. Only if he believed it would Sebastian believe it as well. He decided to try and hate Senka with everything he had. For breaking his heart.

  Sebastian looked down at his swollen knuckles and said, “I believe you. Continue.”

  “She killed the other one. Vigo. Shot him in the back while he ran away. She said she didn’t like cowards. She bound my hands and starved me. She led me like a dog.”

  He was trying to hate her, but the feeling was starting to ebb. He pictured her face, her beautiful, scarred face.

  Sebastian got up and smashed him in the face again. “You’re lying about something. I saw it.”

  Jules shook his head, mostly to clear it. He needed to hate her. The only way this worked is if he hated her. He pictured them standing in the woods, her spitting after she called him a coward. The man who loved her, a coward. The anger grew.

  That was what he needed.

  “No,” he said, “I’m not lying. She’s a bitch. She led me like a dog. She wouldn’t let me eat or drink.”

  Satisfied, Sebastian sat back down and rubbed his knuckles again, “Ok, I believe you. Why did she keep you alive?”

  This was a fine line. It had to be believable. “She wanted secrets about the Solias. She knew I was a guard and she wanted me to tell her secret ways in and out of the city.”

  “Did you?” Sebastian asked.

  Jules hung his head, looking ashamed, “They tortured me. I’m no hero. I only know the one, right beside the moat. I told them that way in. They were taking me outside the village to kill me and I escaped. I ran away. I found you.”

  Sebastian stared at him. “I should kill you for being a coward.”

  Jules nodded. “I know. But I can help!”

  Sebastian waited expectantly.

  “I know the way to the village. I know a way in. It’s through a valley to the north. They won’t be expecting you that way. They expect you to come from the south. If you go through the valley they won’t be expecting you. You’ll be able to take the village and then wait for all the warriors to return.”

  Sebastian nodded. Jules knew that he had him. “Fine,” Sebastian said, “I will present the case to the King. You will ride at the back with him and give directions that will be passed up the ranks. You are not to leave my side. If you turn us wrong, the King will want to kill you himself.”

  Jules nodded.

  Neither of them knew that Eli, in a fit of insanity and bravery, had sneaked his way to the wagon and
had crawled underneath, listening. He admired Jules. He had done what everyone else thought impossible. Eli knew that his small group of scouts would not be able to get Jules out. He waited until Sebastian left and returned to the forest. Jules had made his choice. Eli made the trees and signaled a retreat. They needed to get back to Ismat as fast as possible.

  Jules’ sacrifice would not be wasted.

  32

  Senka

  Tory, Ujarak and Senka made their way to the waterfall where a meeting was being held for the Generals. They felt off. It was collective. Eli and Jules were missed. They had been training hard and with some fine tuning, had a decent troop of archers, hammers and swords. Caedmon had been a good choice. He was very proficient with his sword and ran a tight crew. Senka had counted one thousand troops in all. It was one thousand vs ten thousand. The gravity of the situation hung over all of their heads.

  They arrived at the meeting. Their Generals and Caedmon were there already. They were just discussing orders to move their troops out and set up for a few days walk into the forest when Eli came running up. Senka was surprised and crushed to see him alone.

  “We have one day,” he gasped. “They are headed towards the valley North of the city. Fast. We left when they were entering the trees. They are in their full armour but they are moving faster than we expected. They are better trained than we anticipated. They have been training for this for years.”

  “Wait,” Tory said, “Slow down. Go back a bit. How do they know about the valley? Why in the hell would they bring an army into a valley?”

  “Jules,” was all he said.

  Senka felt her head explode. A massive headache formed behind her eyes. She rubbed her face with her hands. “Dumb ass,” she signed to no one. “I called him a coward, he’s trying to prove otherwise.”

  Tory saw her signing and understood. She put a hand on her shoulder, “We’ll get him back,” she signed back.

  Senka shook her head, “No, we won’t. I will. It’s my mess, I’ll get him back. At least we know what I’ll be doing on the battlefield.”

  “Wait,” the large General with the Warhammer said. His name, they had discovered after the last meeting, was Maccus. He was the son of the Shaman of the second largest Melanthios village and was used to a leadership role. “Go back. Who is Jules? And what did he do?”

  Eli looked at Senka for permission. She was still holding her head, but she gave a small nod. “Jules helped break Senka out of prison. He came with her the whole way. He left a couple days before you arrived.”

  “Wait,” Maccus said, “You had a traitor in your midst, and you thought to keep it from us.”

  Senka exploded into a fit of motion. Before Maccus could even draw his hammer from his back, she was on him. Tantos in each hand, she held them across his throat.

  Maccus held his hands out, palms towards her, the sign for peace. No one moved, no one said anything. She looked him in the eyes with a snarl, panting.

  Finally, Tory said, “Honey. Let it go, ok? He didn’t mean it. Right Maccus? You didn’t mean it.”

  Maccus couldn’t nod. Any move of his head would cut his throat. Instead he looked Senka in the eyes and said, “No, I didn’t mean it. I am just confused at who this Jules is. I should have listened to Eli until the end before making an assumption.”

  Senka slowly lowered her weapons and stepped back to her place in the circle. A sigh of relief echoed through the Generals, including Tory, Eli and Ujarak.

  “Jules is making the sacrifice none of us would,” Eli said. “He withstood torture and revealed that we have a secret entrance to the village through the valley. Of course, this is a lie. They are coming to the valley and are hoping to catch us from behind. Jules didn’t know I was listening. I think he’s just hoping that we have scouts out and they see the army’s direction of travel. Fortunately, for all of us, I was able to find a place to listen and get away without losing a scout.”

  Turning to Senka, he signed, “We all would have died if I had tried getting him out. I’m sorry.”

  She nodded curtly. She understood. Jules had made his choice. It was her fault, no one else’s.

  “I will get him back,” she signed to Eli.

  “He will be kept beside the King, so the King can murder him himself if he leads them astray.”

  Senka smiled. Fate, it would seem, had intervened. “I will kill the King and save Jules. That is my task, no one else’s.”

  “They are keeping the King at the back of the army. You will have a hard job getting to both of them.”

  It was never easy. “Did they say who the King was?”

  “Yes,” Eli said aloud, “He called him the old Head of Peace.” Eli stopped talking when he saw the stricken look on Senka’s face.

  “What is it?” Tory asked.

  “That man is evil. I met him once. He joined Intelligence for a torture session. Actually, my last torture session. The one where Intelligence gifted me with this,” she pointed at her scar. “That man is evil. He is pure darkness. I feared him more than I ever feared Intelligence. There will be no prisoners. He will not keep children alive. He will kill us all if he gets the chance. We can’t give him that chance.”

  Tory translated for the Generals. Subdued and fearful, they stayed silent. Even Maccus.

  “We move out in an hour. We must set traps and prepare around the valley. There’s only one chance to do this, we cannot let Jules’ sacrifice go to waste.”

  The Generals nodded and dispersed. Maccus stayed put.

  “I’m sorry for my words. My father often tells me I need to think more before I speak. I can see that you love him. I hope you get him back,” he held out his hand to her. Senka shook it.

  They walked back to the makeshift camp together. The troops were already breaking down tents. Senka went inside her house and looked around. She would never see this house, her home, again. Gearing up, she looked at the beautiful bow and quiver the Queen had given her. She needed to succeed for the Queen, for her Master, for all of Langundo.

  She had failed everyone else in her life. She wouldn’t fail Jules.

  33

  Senka

  They heard them long before they saw them. The expertly timed marching rang over the trees and drifted towards them. Clearly in full armour, Senka hoped they’d be exhausted from the walk. As they would be caught by surprise, they wouldn’t have time to rest before their attack. That’s all the Melanthios could do. The 1000 vs 10 000 haunted her. More than likely, they’d all die. And it’s all her fault.

  At least she’d be dead too, then the guilt wouldn’t get her.

  She was with Tory, Eli and Ujarak a little bit away from the rest of the troops. Once the scouts said the Sun Gods were close enough, they would split up to lead their respective squads. Senka had a heavy heart. This would be the last time she saw them. They sat in silence, no one wanting to speak. A loud whistle echoed through the trees.

  It was time.

  They stood and hugged, arms over each other’s shoulders, forming a circle.

  “Can’t wait to see you all again when this is done,” Tory said. They all knew she meant dead in the spirit world. “You all are the best and only family I’ve ever had. I love you all.”

  One final nod. There was no reason to say anything else, Tory had summed it up. Senka made her way to the ledge of the valley. That morning they had sent half their troops over the valley on ropes to the other side. The Sun Gods would be attacked from all angles. Ladders would be thrown over the side for the ground troops. That was the most dangerous part of the attack for them.

  The valley was only fifty feet high. Senka would not be using a ladder.

  The first of the Sun Gods round the corner of the valley floor. Reduced to eight across in the valley, they marched shoulder to shoulder, armour gleaming, swords shining. The problem with using this valley was that once the attack started, there was no way to get away. The Melanthios would be stuck.

  No retreat. The only way
out was past the end of the approaching Sun God army to where the valley gently sloped down to the middle of the forest. Or to climb up the jagged rocky walls. The base of the valley was dried river bed, made of pure rock and sand. Footing was going to be an issue.

  They let them march past. Thousands of them. They were going to split them in the middle, the Melanthios on the other side of the valley would push to the front, trying to eliminate as many Sun Gods as possible. Those on her side would push towards the back. This also gave Senka a chance to kill the King. That was key. If the King survived, he would keep attacking. Their only chance was to kill the King, find Sol XIX and return him to Solias.

  One thing at a time, Senka thought.

  Finally, the end of the Sun Gods approached. Hundreds of yards away. Sticking out like a sore thumb was a man in gold armour, sitting atop a horse and wearing a crooked crown. Beside him were three other horses with riders. One was Jules. She knew it. Senka amped herself up and gave a whistle.

  A few deep breaths and she launched herself off the edge of the cliff. The wind cleared her head. Drawing her tantos in the air, she fell on the closest Sun God. Her aim was true and her blades found the groove between the chest armour and the neck plate. Pulling violently backwards, she wrenched his throat out of the back of his neck. Yells from above as arrows fell from the archers around her, finding gaps in the Sun God’s armour.

  The battle had begun.

  The surprise attack worked, and the Sun Gods stood around her stupidly. Senka clipped her tantos into her gloves and fired up the Pulse. She swung at the nearest man, missed, but the electrified end of the tanto hit him in the chest plate. He fell in a fit of convulsions.

  Well, she thought, this might be easier than I thought. The thought had barely entered her mind when something hit her in the back of the head. She stumbled forward and turned. A Sun God had hit her with the broad side of her great sword. Senka blocked the next blow and shoved a tanto in the woman’s armpit. She fell, writhing, with a spurt of bright red blood.